


Don't Be Afraid of the Future

by Joveesia, MelodicMadness



Series: Luceid Aeon Raftina [2]
Category: Tales of Xillia, Tales of Xillia 2
Genre: AU, Alju is established, Half-Spirit AU, Ludger lives, Multi, PLEASE READ DURAS DRUM FIRST, Post-Game, Slow Build, Well he comes back, more tags to come
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-01
Updated: 2015-11-05
Packaged: 2018-03-09 23:16:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 21,101
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3267959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Joveesia/pseuds/Joveesia, https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelodicMadness/pseuds/MelodicMadness
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ludger is back among the living again with no knowledge of how he got there or why he was brought back. Now he searches for his friends to help solve the mystery and prevent whatever new threat has arisen to tear the world apart. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Slow-build relationships to be put up later. Collab work.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Reunion

**Author's Note:**

> If I, Joveesia, am in charge of titles then it's 100% assured it'll be a reference to SOMETHIng. It's terrible really. Anyway this chapter was a true collab between Asch and myself. We both wrote bits for this chapter so that was fun. Google docs is godly like that, Also you all should check out the amazing art she did for Ludger's redesign (Which you can see below).

 

His head hurt. His body hurt. Ludger didn't know where he was or what had happened after the mysterious figure knocked him out. He felt the warmth of a bright sun against the chill of a wafting breeze. There were no flora rustling, no fauna moving. He was somewhere desolate yet felt vibrant with life.  Ludger cracked open his eyes against the bright sun to assess where he was. Rocks that were pressed into his back fall off as he sat up.

 

The Nia Khera Hallowmont Summit. He had been there once before but never saw much reason in returning to the sacred ground. Ludger moved to stand up, wavering a bit as he balanced himself on his feet. It felt strange to have a body again.  He had a lot of questions and he was eager to have them answered. He knew he had to make his way down the Hallowmont if he wanted to learn anything. After deciding on this course of action, he dusted himself off a bit then habitually reached for his suspenders to adjust them. Except that they weren’t there.

  
  


In fact, he noticed that his clothes weren’t anything like his old ones, nor were they anything you’d find in an Elymion store. A capelet made of petal-like panels wrapped around his shoulders. His shirt had been replaced by a tight-fitting tunic barely reaching his thighs. What he found most odd about his new outfit were the leggings paired with over-the-knee boots that followed every dip and curve of his legs. To sum it up, he felt very… well, floofy.

  
  


Ludger couldn’t complain too much though. Whoever or whatever did this to him at least had the decency to clothe him. He began to walk down to the Spiritway so that he may be able to get help in the village beyond that. He needed to find the others. They could help him figure out just who the hell did this and for what reason. Granted, he wasn't complaining by any stretch to be brought back to the land of the living but he doubted a certain great spirit would be pleased with his return. That was of course assuming Chronos was just observing and not with Origin.

 

Down, down, down the winding path he went. He avoided the monsters well enough; he had had practice when he was in less than fit condition to handle them. One jump, then two more and he was finally clear of the Hollowmont. The scenic Spiritway took hardly any time at all to pass, though he did get caught by an encounter. It was dealt with swiftly but Ludger couldn't help but feel like there was something off about the fight, something off about himself. A strange energy buzzed in his head. No, there was no time to stop and think about that. He needed to get a move on.

 

Ludger was able to avoid any other battles along the sacred path, causing him to feel a sense of relief. Ivar would hopefully be around in the quiet settlement.  As he walked down into the village, he noticed some of the nearby villagers were staring at him intensely. He felt like something was wrong, they had all seen him before and he doubted they had learned of his demise. So why were they staring at him like he had two heads? (He glanced down at his body, just double checking that he did indeed have the normal amount of appendages).

 

Ludger approached a small group of gossipers but they quickly silenced themselves. He awkwardly asked them if Ivar happened to be around in the village. They replied that they had last seen him with Jude and Leia in his home to the southeast corner of Nia Khera.

 

Ludger felt himself smile a little, glad that their presence meant he wouldn’t have to pester Ivar too much to help him. He thanked the villagers and jogged down to the aforementioned house, knocking on the door. He heard the muffled “coming!” as Leia approached the door. She started to open it but before he could even say hello, she slammed the door closed and began yelling at Jude.

 

“JUDE THERE’S A GHOST AT THE DOOR! ROWEN WAS RIGHT THIS PLACE IS HAUNTED!”

  
Ghost…? Ludger leaned in to hear the conversation better.  

 

A soft chuckle came from Jude, then his footsteps approached the door. “What are you talking about, Leia?” he said as he began to open the door. “There’s no such thing as…” Ludger got a glimpse of Jude’s eye before the door slammed shut once again. His alarmed voice echoed through the house, louder and higher than Leia’s.

 

Ludger sighed and moved to just open the door himself, seeing as the two of them weren’t going to leave the door open long enough to let him in.

 

“Guys, guys! It’s just me! It’s Ludger.” He stepped in and closed the door behind him, narrowly missing a shoe. He gave Leia the most unimpressed look he could muster. Leia was hiding behind Jude.

 

“But… but how are you here? We _saw_ Origin erase you.” Leia sputtered.

 

“Beats me, I wish I could say I remembered. All I know is I woke up on the Hollowmont dressed like this with no idea how I got there. Before that… well, it’s hard to explain. I came down here to find Ivar but I’ll definitely take you two,” Ludger grinned at them expectantly.

 

Jude relaxed, unclenching his fists, and Leia slowly moved away from his back.

 

“Well, you can’t blame us for not recognizing you. It’s been a month and a half already and you look… different.” Jude awkwardly motioned to Ludger and his new ensemble.

 

“Yeah, about that,” Ludger began, rubbing at the back of his head bashfully, “I don’t know what’s up with the clothes but I’ll take them over wearing nothing. Besides, I can change once we get back to my apartment.”

 

“No, Ludger. You look _different_ , as in…” Jude sighed, “Leia go get a mirror from one of the villagers.”

 

“Roger!” Leia exited the home with great speed and Ludger was starting to wonder if he should be extremely concerned.

 

“Jude, and be honest with me, is it really that bad? Do I have a different face or something?”

 

Jude frowned, looking over him thoroughly. “Nothing like that, but I don’t think you’d believe me if I told you.” Ludger nodded slightly and moved to sit in a vacant chair. He fidgeted nervously as he waited for Leia to get back with a mirror.

 

Once she returned, she made her way over to him and cautiously handed him the mirror, but paused just before he grabbed it. “Now don’t freak out too bad, okay? More screaming is just going to scare all the villagers.” Jude let out a tiny cough, more than aware of how loudly he voiced his surprise earlier.

 

Ludger nodded before taking the mirror. He exhaled and braced himself for whatever calamity had apparently befallen his previously ‘dashing’ looks.

 

Jude and Leia were relieved he didn’t scream, but his actual reaction wasn’t much better.   
  


“What the hell?!” he shouted the moment he saw his reflection. He fumbled the mirror, nearly dropping it.

  
  
“Ludger, it’s okay--” Jude began but was cut off by more of Ludger’s shouts.

 

“What’s on my face?!” He rubbed at the left side of his face where a black mark had creeped over the skin there, oddly similar to the markings he had when using the Chromatus. He turned his head some more and his jaw dropped. “Pointy… ears?” It was true-- the tips of his ears had lost their roundness and were instead tapering into a gentle point.

 

Though the part that upset him the most was his new hairstyle. “And what happened to my haaaaaaair?!” he whined, pulling on the long strands that framed his face. It had taken him months to get just the perfect look, and now the precariously placed dye was all gone. The tips of his hair faded into white and that was the exact opposite of what Ludger had worked for.

 

He turned the mirror away from him, unable to take in his drastically different appearance any longer, and stood up, a forlorn expression on his face. He returned the mirror to Leia, his hands shaking from the shock.

 

Jude quickly tried to think of a way to better his mood. “Hey, uh, it’s okay. Your new look is, um, fitting?”

 

Ludger glanced up at him with zero amusement. “Fitting how, exactly? I look like one of those Elympions on too much Catamar Salt!” Ludger hung his head in exasperation as he remembered some of the weird things those people told him when he walked the streets of Duval. Leia frowned and was about to say something when the front door burst open and a wound-up Ivar stormed through.

 

“Just what is with all of the racket, pho...ny?” His eyes widened upon seeing Ludger. “WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY HOUSE?!”

 

“I-Ivar! Please just calm down for a second!” Jude had jumped up to block a slow reacting Ludger from one of the many weapons Ivar happened to keep on his person.

 

“I knew I should have never trusted you, phony! Bringing weirdos into my house!” He lunged himself at both Jude and Ludger with the clear intention of fighting them, but before he could get too far, Leia’s staff made contact with the top of his head. His body crumpled to the floor, dazed and in pain.

 

“Now would you just listen for a second?” she growled, staff still gripped tightly in her hands incase he tried a stunt like that again.

 

“You… you have persuaded me  to listen but only because I chose to and not because you bested me at all!” Ivar said from the floor, rubbing his wounded head. Jude just sighed at the two of them before explaining what very little they knew about the situation. Thirty minutes later and they were all sitting civilly with each other, discussing what could be possible reason for Ludger’s transformation and return from the dead.

 

“Well, it’s obvious what we need to do now. We need to get together like old times and solve this mystery! It’ll make a great story to boot!” Jude and Ludger chortled at Leia’s enthusiasm.

 

“You’ve got a good point. I’ll ask Rowen if he knows where everyone is right now and we can just regroup with them as we go along.”

 

“Maybe I can find a barber or a change of clothes along the way too…” Ludger tugged at his tunic a little for emphasis, still upset about his physical change.

 

Leia tilted her head as she observed his clothes. “But it looks so… snazzy! Like you’re the hero of an epic book!” Ludger snorted and amusedly looked at Leia with a finger pointed in her direction.

 

“You _would_ think it’s snazzy.” He teased. They were on good enough terms even after such a long time that they could joke like that.

 

“Oh hush! I’m sure I’m not the only one that thinks that!” Leia got a sly grin on her face, “I’m sure Muzet would _love_ it.” Ludger cringed a little. Knowing Muzet she’d either love it or hate it but she would tease him relentlessly.

 

Jude cringed with him, having experienced Muzet’s teasing and affection. “It really isn’t all that bad, Ludger,” he began. “It has a very Rieze Maxian look to it, if anything.” He really hoped it’d cheer Ludger up a bit. He was already a little freaked out over being brought back from the _dead_. Jude’s GHS alerted him of the reply from Rowen. “Rowen says that Alvin’s the closest to us right now in Xian Du. He also says he’ll be returning to Kanbalar with Gaius by the time we reach it.”

 

“Whelp, I guess it’s off to Xian Du! Hey! Maybe we can enter the coliseum to see what Ludger’s got at his disposal for, you know, research!”

 

Jude chuckled. “You just want to fight, Leia.”

 

“What’s wrong with that? It’ll be good practice since those monsters aren’t anything compared to us!”

 

“That’s probably a good idea. It’s a… sort of controlled environment, and something did feel off when I had to fend off a monster coming here,” Ludger supported. Not to mention, he did enjoy the coliseum more than he had let on previously.

 

Jude finally acquiesced with a groaning “fine.” Ludger and Leia both grinned.

 

“You know fine, don’t invite me to come along with, I didn’t want to go anyway,” Ivar whined out after crossing his arms. Before Ludger could even ask him if he wanted to tag along, Ivar continued on about how it was his duty to protect the village and that they should just get a move on, and before the trio realized it, Ivar had shooed them out of his house.

 

Once outside, they agreed on stocking up their supplies before heading out into the Xagut Floodmeadow.

 

Ludger would have to wait a little longer for some answers.


	2. Discovering New Skills

By the next morning, the group had arrived in Xian Du. Large crowds of people walked the streets, more than usual. Ludger was shocked to see the city this crowded. An important tournament must have been coming up at the coliseum.

They were making their way to the shops to restock when Ludger spotted a familiar handsome face floating among the flocks of people.

“Hey, I think I see Alvin!” he said, trying to point him out to his companions.

“Where?” Leia looked around, her eyes squinted, until they finally landed on their friend. “Oh, hey! It is him!”

They all started approaching him, snaking around the crowds of people, with Leia leading the group.

“Hey, Alvin!” she shouted in joy.

Alvin turned away from whoever he was talking to to look for the source of noise. Leia landed on him with a hug before he could even register her presence.

“Woah! Hey, kiddo. What’re you doing here? I thought you were in Nia Khera with…” he paused when he saw Jude. “Ah, Jude! There you are.” He smiled at him but that smile quickly fell when his eyes noticed the other man standing behind him.  

Jude noticed the shift in expressions and quickly assessed what was going on. “Don’t be alarmed.”

“Less alarmed and more doubtful of whether I’m actually awake or not,” Alvin added, his voice tense.

Ludger finally came forward, wanting to smooth out the confusion as soon as possible. “Hey, Alvin. It’s me. Ludger.”

Alvin opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it with a huff. Finally he found the words he wanted to say, “Why the hell am I just finding out now? How long have you been back? And-- and -- _how_?!”

Ludger abashedly rubbed the back of his head. “I wish I had an answer for you. I have no idea how this happened.”

“He just showed up in Nia Khera,” Leia added. “We’re on our way to meet up with Gaius and Rowen in Kanbalar but are stopping here to try and test out Ludger’s new abilities in the coliseum. Oh, and Rowen mentioned that you were here--”  
  
“Rowen knew too?!” Alvin shouted, trying to sound as appalled as possible.

“And Gaius,” Jude added weakly.

Alvin looked put out. “I’m hurt, _crushed_ even!” He gave a slight smile to them all to show he was joking before continuing on his melodramatic rant. After a few more words about how no one ever thinks of poor ol’ Alvin, he finally decided to give Ludger a better greeting. He approached him and grasped one of his hands, shaking it enthusiastically. “Gotta say, I never thought I’d get to see you again. Kinda feels like staring at a ghost.”

Ludger smiled at him, returning the handshake. “That’s been the normal reaction so far.”

Alvin grinned widely and chuckled. “I bet. Get used to it, though,” He smacked Ludger’s back, “We’ll have to get you a hair cut at least. You look like a Catamar Roamer.”

“Yes, definitely. I know a guy in Trigleph when we get back there.” Ludger smiled.

“Enough chitchat, let’s go fight already!” Leia demanded, wiggling back and forth in excitement.

“Alright, alright. Calm down you two,” Jude chuckled. “You should join us, Alvin.”

“What, actually going to include me in something?”

“Of course! You’ll serve as a great distraction! Now let’s go beat up some opponents!” Leia exclaimed and grabbed Alvin’s arm, starting to drag him toward the ferry.

“Fiiiiine. Now let go of me,” Alvin laughed and let Leia drag him. Ludger and Jude followed after, both amused by the banter. The quartet continued toward the young ferryman, asking for passage. Since there was the tournament today, he didn’t charge fare for the trip.

The lobby of the coliseum was packed with hopeful contestants, all looking for their five minutes of fame. Jude moved through the buzzing crowd easily, trying to get to the front desk to register them as fast as possible. Before the others could get to him, Jude darted back with the registration and information on their first battle. The quartet moved to the designated waiting area to be called into the ring. Ludger was a little nervous. He didn’t know what to expect in this fight and he knew no one else did either. Alvin must have sensed his anxiousness because he started to crack jokes and just talk. Jude and Leia picked up on it also and soon Ludger forgot what he was even worried about. He was lucky to have friends like that.

The announcer called them over to the main arena, introduced them, then introduced their opponents. The fiends representing the opposition were pathetic in mild terms. They defeated them with ease, Ludger didn’t even have that weird feeling like he did on his way to Nia Khera. After a short reprieve, they were thrown into round two. This time, more powerful monsters faced against them. It took them longer and more strategy was required but they ended up victorious. This time Ludger had felt it, just a little bit. That little twinge of something wanting to break free, to come out. He told the others just before their final match began.

The monstrosity that faced them down could have only been one of those elite monsters that occasionally appeared on the job lists. How Xian Du got their hands on one, Ludger never wanted to know. It flew, dashing at them at incredible speeds and knocking them all over before they had a time to brace. Leia was stuck on supporting the other three with her healing artes, Ludger tried to toss pineapple gels her way any time he could but she was burning through her mana fast. The beast flew high above them, well out of the reach of any of their melee weapons. Alvin and Ludger tried to inflict some damage with their guns but the monster was having none of that today. Rainbow wings dove down in a tail spin, critically injuring Jude when it leveled. Ludger was starting to get anxious again, they had used their item limit for this tournament and Leia was trying to recover some mana to heal Jude. If they didn’t do something soon he’d die. The twinge became stronger, more prominent.

“Alvin, cover me!”

“Ludger? What the hell are you doing?!”

Ludger could help out, he knew he could if he could just… heal like Leia did. He focused on the pull in his mind, the soft unintelligible whisperings that offered him information he could not yet understand. He didn’t care, if it could help he’d take it. Something snapped and he felt a surge of power flow through him to his hand. He immediately outstretched it toward Jude and felt the power rush out of his finger tips.

“First Aid!”

Jude dodged the next hit from the flying beast with ease. After he had retreated a safe distance, he gawked at Ludger with Leia and Alvin.

“Was… Was that a Spirit Arte?!” Jude blurted out, taking his attention off of the monster just long enough for it to retaliate. Alvin ran to intercept and block the blow.

“How about we ask questions _after_ we’re finished!” Alvin shot at the attacking limb to thwart off its owner. “Just… just try to use anything else you think you’ve got.” Alvin chased after it as it retreated. Ludger nodded and followed for support, feeling the rise of foreign power again. He latched on to it, offering its help far faster than before. This time it felt different, cooler. After a moment of mustering his new found mana, he cast the spell.

“Splash!” A torrent of cold water crashed down on their foe, startling it for a moment. Leia cheered in the background at Ludger’s new spell. He thought he was starting to get the hang of it. He figured out just how to ‘summon’ which spell he needed at the time. Ludger figured he could ask Jude or Leia later how they do it to compare notes.

After about another fifteen minutes, the behemoth finally fell to Ludger’s splash.  They rejoiced and the crowd cheered loudly at their victory. Ludger looked around the stadium to see all of the smiling, elated faces peering down at them. He felt his GHS vibrate in his pocket and pulled it out to read the text he received.

_That was riveting to watch. We’ll be out in the lobby._

__

It was from _Rowen_ which meant that he and Gaius were both currently in the stands, watching them. Ludger didn’t know if he should feel happy or irritated that they came without telling any of them. He settled on feeling bemused as he scanned the crowd for the two of them. When he found them, Rowen was clapping amusedly at their victory as Gaius sat next to him with a small smile that Ludger wouldn’t have noticed if he were further away. Alvin startled Ludger by tackling him with a one armed hug.

“That was awesome!”

“Yeah it was, but I think we should get out of the arena,” Jude cheerily commented as Leia bounced over to join in the hug. Ludger laughed a little.

“Yeah, sorry about that. Rowen sent me a text and I was just looking for them.”

“Wait, Rowen’s here? That means Gaius is too.” Alvin let go of Ludger and Leia as he lead them out of the fighting area.

“Yeah, apparently they’ll meet us in the lobby.”

“Well let’s go see them already!” Leia darted past them, Alvin following suit in a friendly game of tag. Jude just shook his head and laughed as he jogged out with Ludger.

They spotted Rowen and Gaius near the dock. Leia waved at them and Rowen returned the gesture before both groups rejoined by the stairs leading up.

“My, my. When Jude told me that you were back, I half expected it to be a prank,” Rowen clasped Ludger’s hand to shake it. “If you hadn’t been with the others I wouldn’t have recognized you.” Gaius nodded in agreement of Rowen’s statements.

“Yes, your appearance is quite…. peculiar. You look like a subject of Reize Maxia, minus your ears of course,” Gaius chuckled. Jude piped up with the remark that he had said the same thing when he saw Ludger.

“Yeah, well, once we get to Trigleph I plan on changing clothes and cutting my hair,” Ludger pulled on a strand of his hair, twirling it in his fingers a little. “And before you ask, no I have no idea how I came back,” Ludger knew that was the question everyone wanted answered, himself especially.

“Fair enough. Though I think that your new appearance suits you,” Gaius commented back. Ludger thought the tips of his ears were turning a little pink for reasons he couldn’t explain.

“Well, we might not know how but the fact you can use spirit artes probably has a correlation to it,” Jude pointed out. Ludger nodded.

“I suspect we could acquire more information about your state at the Laforte Laboratories. They have instruments there to analyze spirits that Elympios just doesn’t have yet. Isn’t that right, Jude?” Rowen smiled as he turned toward the young researcher.

“Yeah you’re right. We can do a preliminary scan,” Jude nodded as he mulled it over, muttering the names of what could be assumed to be other researchers and instruments.

“I’ll contact Elize to inform her of our destination. I suggest we head to Lakutam Seahaven and take a boat in the morning,” Rowen pulled out his phone and quickly sent off the text to Elize. Rowen informed them all when Elize texted him back that she would meet them with Elle in Fennmont. The rest of the group agreed to the travel plans and took the ferry back to Xian Du. After restocking any needed supplies, they all headed down the Lakutam Highroad.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Asch did the first bit of this chapter, upto about where Alvin's complaining about. She was also awesome and also edited it/making sure it was coherent. Joveesia just wrote the bulk of everything after that part roughly. Also we get really excited when you guys hit kudos or leave a comment. Seriously, it makes our day <3


	3. Of Nightmares and Seafoam

Ludger found plenty of practice with his new spirit artes on the road to Lakutam Seahaven. He actively went after some of the monsters just to get a better feel for them and to see if he happened to possess any other spells. Leia seemed to enjoy it too and Alvin just called him a kid about it. Ludger didn’t care too much, he knew it was important to figure out the full spectrum of his abilities. By the time they reached the seahaven, Ludger had discovered two new spirit artes; Fireball and Pixie Circle. Rowen, Jude, and Leia were all talking with Ludger about said spirit artes, giving him their tips on using them and what to watch out for medically. Ludger was so thankful for their advice and told them as much.

They all made their way to the inn as the sun was starting to set. Alvin and Rowen ordered some drinks at the bar while the others took care of the room situation. Eventually, Leia and Gaius moved to join Alvin and Rowen, leaving the designated ‘team mom’ to handle the rooms. Ludger knew that they were pretty well booked for the night thanks to the tournament, so he was expecting a little bit of a tight fit. What he didn’t expect was the inn also going through renovations after a powerful monster broke into the seahaven and caused severe damage to the inn’s northerly side. The innkeeper gave Jude and Ludger six keys to their prospective rooms, telling them to say something if they needed anything.  Ludger thanked him and moved over to the others with Jude.

“So it looks like Leia’s the only one who gets a room to herself, the rest of us have to share.” Ludger started to hand out the keys to their rooms.

“And before any of you ask, no, I’m not sharing,” Leia mused. Ludger wasn’t surprised. He figured even if she did consider it, only Jude would have made the cut and they all knew he liked to be with Alvin. They were the worst kept secret around and they didn’t even know it.

“Five guys in one room? That’s not going to be fun. I’m claiming one of the beds,” Alvin took the key and started to head toward their room to claim a spot. Jude followed after him with Rowen behind him. Ludger figured they’d need a spare bed so he returned to the innkeeper and requested one be brought up to their room. Leia all but ran to her room to enjoy her solitude from the sausage fest that was her company. Gaius started to head up to the room after Ludger was done talking, making Ludger the last one to get there.

The room was oddly large enough to fit six people comfortably; there were three queen sized beds all in a neat row against the left side wall. There were two nightstands, one between each bed, with a simple plant on them for decoration as a painting hung from the opposite wall. It was very quaint and would certainly do for the night. Ludger asked his compatriots if they thought they still needed the spare bed. Everyone replied with a no so Ludger moved back down to the lobby to cancel the order.  When he returned, he found only Gaius left in the room.

“Where are the others?” Ludger moved to sit on what he figured to be one of the two empty bed spaces to sleep.

“Jude and Alvin went to get some food for tonight's dinner. Rowen, I suspect, is getting tickets for tomorrow's ferry just to be sure we have them.” Gaius was in a chair in the corner, seeming like he was relaxing. Gaius then told Ludger what the sleeping arrangements were at present. “As assumed, Jude and Alvin are sharing the far bed. Rowen currently has taken the middle bed and I the closest. If you are uncomfortable with sleeping with either myself or Rowen, I’m sure Jude and Alvin will… part for the night.” 

Ludger chuckled a little. “No, no. I’ll be fine as long as I don’t have to share a bed with Rowen,” Ludger smiled warmly at Gaius, who just nodded back.

“I can understand the sentiment. He can be… difficult to room with at times. Especially the snoring.” 

Ludger hummed in agreement. “Does he mutter smart remarks in his sleep too?” he said with a lopsided grin. 

Gaius' eyebrows shot up in amusement. "Thankfully, no."

Ludger moved to grab one of the spare pillows to use for the night. He always had a sore neck in the morning from the flat pillows inns always have. He found that while it didn’t completely alleviate the problem, doubling up on his pillows helped reduce the strain on his neck. Alvin teased him about it at first before he actually tried it. Ludger couldn’t help but give him a smug look the next morning. Just in that moment, said ex-Exodus member walked in with Jude, catching Ludger with the amused smile on his face.

“Oh? What’s got you all smiley?” Alvin set some of the dry goods on the spare side of the center bed while Jude put up the heartier meals on the floor in an unused corner of the room by the window. Ludger shrugged before smirking at Alvin.

“Just remembering when you fell to my advice about the pillows,” he said, Alvin snorting in response.

“That was only _once,_ and you’re still a baby for using two.”

“Better than complaining about my neck all day,” Ludger mused, fluffing the pillows a little before laying on them to test them. He heard Alvin call him a dork amusedly. The door opened and Rowen walked in, announcing that he got the tickets for the ferry tomorrow.

“And with that out of the way, I suggest we all try to get a good night sleep. It will be a long trip to Fennmont.” Rowen set the tickets on the nearby end table so that they wouldn’t be forgotten.

“The geezer’s got a point,” Alvin chimed in as Rowen huffed a complaint at the name. “Let’s eat some grub then hit the sack.” After their small dinner, (Ludger eating the least, finding that he wasn't really hungry), they all undressed enough to where sleeping would be comfortable. Ludger found he wasn’t able to remove much thanks to how the clothes were made and just decided to suffer through being fully dressed. The lights were turned out shortly afterwards, the occasional shuffling of a body moving under the sheets or the squeak of springs as everyone got comfortable. Ludger drifted off into the dark depths of slumber.

**  
  
**

~               ~

        ~              ~

~              ~

**  
  
**

There was screaming, it was black. He didn’t know where he was. Up, down, left, right. Always looked the same. He heard more screaming, this time he could make it out.

_“Murderer!”_

__

_“Why us?!”_

__

_“Why did we have to go?!”_

He ran ran ran so far. The voices, the screams, the yells chased after him. He fell off of a cliff he never saw. Falling falling falling, he landed into an abyss of nothingness, everything went black. He woke up in another room, a figure far off in the distance, hunched over crying. Ludger walked toward them, to her, to Milla. She turned on him, hostile, angry.

_“Why are you alive?! Why did you let me die?! Was destroying my dimension not good enough?! Why do you get to come back?!”_

With every question she advanced on him, knocking him down and wrapping her hands around his neck. She squeezed and squeezed with every question. Ludger was panicking as Milla choked him.

_“What makes you so special you get to continue your life? You have blood on your hands!”_

**  
  
**

~               ~

        ~              ~

~              ~

**  
  
**

Ludger woke with a start, his heart was pounding and his thoughts were racing wildly through his head. His ragged breathing was loud in the silent, dark room and it reminded him of his surroundings.

It was just a dream, he told himself, just a dream. He exhaled, wiping off the sweat that had formed on his forehead. His hand paused as it slid back down and brushed against his neck. He swore he could feel the ghosts of Milla’s hands still angrily wrapped around his neck. He shivered.

He glanced over to his side, worried he’d woken up Gaius. The king looked as though he hadn’t been disturbed which brought some relief to Ludger. Gaius never seemed to get enough sleep, so it was good to see him catching up a little. As carefully as he could, Ludger rose from the bed. There was no possible way for him to fall back asleep now. He had to get some fresh air, that dream-- no, that nightmare-- rattled him. He slipped out of the room quietly to roam the deserted seahaven, trying to clear his thoughts in the cold, night air and the smell of sea water.

He found a railing that overlooked the water and leaned against it, staring at the dark waves below, hoping their rhythm and gentle sounds could bring him some solace. Milla’s words still echoed in his head. The guilt of destroying other worlds had never left him, but he managed to place it on the back-burner while he dealt with other things. But that nightmare had reached right into him and pulled out every single ounce of guilt he had ever felt and forced it all onto him at once.

Was Milla right? Did he not deserve this second chance? He still didn’t fully understand it, or why he of all people got to come back from the dead, and that made him angrier than anything else. Who was doing this and why? Why couldn’t Milla come back as well?

He draped himself over the railing, arms crossed and eyes closed. A sigh left his mouth, a sigh that didn’t escape the ears of his visitor.

“Is everything alright?” Gaius asked, his deep voice shaking Ludger out of his thoughts.

Ludger managed not to jump in shock, but he was definitely surprised. He stood straight and turned around to face him, hoping his face didn’t give away all the turmoil he felt at that moment. “I’m sorry, did I wake you up when I left the room?”

Gaius shook his head. “No, you did not wake me up. I never fell asleep, actually.”

Ludger frowned at this. “I was asleep… for a while.” He sighed again, dragging a hand over his tired expression. “A nightmare woke me up.”

“I suspected as much,” Gaius replied, matching his frown. “Do you wish to talk about it?” He walked ahead, joining his friend at the railing.

Hesitating at first, Ludger nodded his head and turned back to face the water, finding it easier to talk to the darkness. “It was... Milla. The other Milla. She was shouting at me, reminding me of the worlds I killed. The lives I took.” Ludger paused, trying to steady his breath. Gaius remained silent, patiently waiting for him to continue. “She was so angry at me, angry that she died. Her hands were around my neck, squeezing so tightly that I swear I can still feel them now.” Ludger turned to face his companion. “I woke up right before she killed me.”

Gaius’ frown deepened. He moved to place a hand on Ludger’s forearm, trying to pull his attention away from the phantom hands around his neck and to the warmth of his touch instead. “The burden of destroying the fractured dimensions is not yours to bear alone, Ludger.”

“I know that-- well, I thought I did. Now I’m not so sure anymore.”

“I’m sure of it. We were all responsible. But our actions saved our world. We can’t dwell on the past.” Ludger gave him a tiny ‘yeah’ in response. Gaius spoke up again, his voice softer. “As for Milla, she willingly gave herself for us. She wouldn’t blame you for her death. She did what she believed was her best option, and if you did get to speak to her again, I’m certain she’d thank you for letting her choose her own path in the end.”

The King’s words resonated within Ludger. He hadn’t realized a stray tear rolling down his cheek until it met with his lips. He wiped it away and looked Gaius straight in the eyes. “Kind of like how you guys let me decide in the end.”

“Precisely.” Gaius finally let his hand drop, but he remained close. “I admit I felt an immense sadness upon your death, even though I knew there was no other option. But you made the right choice, just like Milla did.”

Ludger bit his lip, nodding his head. “Y-yeah, you’re right. I just… I just have to accept the blood on my hands.”

“Indeed. Without it, more blood would have surely been spilt. You saved countless lives, and for that, you deserve this second chance at life.”

Ludger looked at him, surprised. He hadn’t even revealed that part of his nightmare to him. He understood him better than himself, it seemed. The surprised look melted away into a small grin. “Thank you, Erston. I really needed to hear all of that.”

Gaius shrugged it off. “I only told you the truth. However, I should be grateful that you feel safe confiding in me.”

“Of course,” Ludger responded a bit eagerly. “I would trust you with anything.”

The honest words left Gaius speechless for a moment, as well as embarrassed. He broke their gaze, which wasn't even a foot apart, “Do you wish to return to the inn and attempt sleep again?”

“I think I’ll stay out here for a few more minutes,” he said, then added a few seconds after, “You’re free to join me.” He didn’t want Gaius to leave just yet. His presence was calming, although his fluttering heart would say otherwise.

“I’d enjoy that,” he responded with one of his rare grins.

They ended up spending another hour outside, switching in between small talk and spells of comfortable silence. When they did finally return to their bed, Ludger found it much easier to fall asleep, not a nightmare in sight.

However, his rest was fairly short lived. Ludger woke up a few hours later, feeling completely rested. Once he blinked his eyes open after yawning, he noticed he had inched closer to Gaius in his sleep. He knew he was a cuddler in bed; Julius used to tease him endlessly about it. Ludger figured it had stemmed from all the time he used to sleep with Julius when he was a little kid, when he used to have some rough dreams. Julius never seemed to mind much anyway. With careful movements, Ludger scooted away from Gaius. In his movements he happened to glance over at Jude and Alvin. He only let out an amused huff at seeing Alvin wrapped around Jude as they slept. They all knew they were together, even though they tried to be subtle about it. Ludger would have to tease them about it in the morning.

It was still very early in the morning, and dawn wasn’t going to arrive for about another two hours or so. Ludger just laid there, refusing to move much more just in case Gaius was _actually_ sleeping this time. He exhaled softly, wondering if his sleeplessness had something to do with his new appearance and abilities. He figured he'd ask the others after they woke up. Gaius shifted next to him then exhaled, making Ludger think that he really was asleep this time. The next two hours passed in relative silence, only one or two of the guys snored at any given time which saved Ludger from a headache. When he thought he saw a crack of sunlight peeking through the window, he carefully got up to get fully dressed again. To his disappointment, he wasn’t as quiet as he wanted to be. Gaius was the first to wake up, looking extremely groggy as well as sporting some glorious bedhead. Ludger stifled a laugh at Gaius’s sleep muzzied voice when he asked what Ludger was doing.

“I’m just going to get some breakfast. We can save the meals Jude and Alvin got for later,” Ludger whispered back. Gaius just gave a slight grunt as an affirmative before moving to lay back down to sleep more. Ludger heard Rowen shift with what he thought to be a chuckle while he heard Jude mumbling to Alvin about something. Ludger left the room as quietly as possible, though he suspected that they would be all up by the time he got back.

Ludger took a deep breath when he exited the inn. The air was crisp and invigorating as the sea welcomed a new day. Seagulls beckoned the fishmongers waking to catch their livelihood, bakeries wafted the sweet smell of fresh treats to entice waking customers. Ludger never thought that seahavens could be this lively this early in the morning. Ludger headed to the bakery and entered after seeing it was open this early. He ordered an assortment of stuffed croissants to take back to the others, hoping the flavors he picked were ones they liked. The sun was just starting to break over the horizon as Ludger left the delectable shop, mesmerizing him.

He never really stopped to watch the sunrises any more. He was usually too busy to. The sunrises he did remember weren’t all that special. He wondered if the magnificence of it was reduced by the lack of spirits in Elympios. Either way, the light shining on his face -- getting brighter and brighter-- transfixed him.

“So the rumors _are_ true!” Two hands suddenly appeared from nowhere, snapping Ludger out of his trance and causing him to almost drop the bag of pastries. He whipped his head around to see who had snuck up on him.

**  
**“M-Muzet?!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Longest chapter so far; I wrote until after the nightmare, then Asch took over the main Gaiger scene until Ludger falls back asleep and then I finished up the last bit. Hope you all know we originally planned it to cut off after Ludger fell back asleep. 
> 
> Also we're making Alju established in this fic, so they'll be a little more background but they're there. Gaiger was the main pairing we were going after so just a head's up.
> 
> AS ALWAYS, WE ADORE COMMENTS FROM YOU GUYS. You can message us or ask or some way of getting a hold of us to gush about stuff. Idk, but just throwing that out there.


	4. Tip of the Iceberg

Muzet just grinned at Ludger, amused at his fright.

“No need to be all jumpy. If anyone should be surprised, it should be me,” She teased, floating around him once to get a good look at him. “Undine was right, you're alive. And you look different.” She tugged on one of his ears, causing him to wince a little. He never realized how sensitive they were until now and he reckoned he didn't want too many people messing with them.

“Yeah, we're going to head to Laforte labs to see just what the heck is going on,” Ludger shifted his weight to his other leg. “You're of course more than welcome to come with us. We'll only be missing Milla, Elle and Elize then,” he said with a smile. Muzet started wiggling with what he could only assume was excitement.

“Yes, yes! I'd love to come along!” She tackled him in a half hug, rubbing her cheek against his. He laughed awkwardly and tried to get her to stop.

“Alright, alright! I was just bringing them all breakfast first before we get on the ferry.” Ludger started to walk back to the inn with Muzet amusedly hanging on to his shoulders. Ludger tried to bring as little attention to himself as he could but having a floating woman behind him did nothing for that hope. He eventually made it back to the inn with only a handful of concerned stares from citizens. He walked by Leia’s room first, tentatively knocking. “Leia? If you're awake I have some croissants for everyone,” he said into the door, waiting for a moment before hearing shuffling of what he thought was cloth of some sort. Before he could even process what she was doing, Leia opened up her door. She didn't even register that Muzet was there yet. She was too busy trying to get to the bag Ludger held.

“Gimme, I'm starvin’!” Ludger let her take the bag to pick which one she wanted.

“Make sure you leave some for the rest of us,” he teased, earning him a swift kick in his direction. She almost hit him and realized how lucky he was. “Kidding! I was only kidding!” He backed up a bit incase she decided to kick again.

“Have you been hanging out with Alvin a lot? Because you’re really starting to sound like him.” Leia gave him a dry look, but he only laughed it off.

“Sorry, I’ll be sure to keep that in check.” Ludger took the bag back after Leia grabbed a powdered sugar covered chocolate filled croissant. It was after she took her first bite that she finally noticed Muzet, who at this point looked less than amused.

“Oh, hey, Muzet. Good to see you again,” Leia spoke while chewing her pastry. Muzet just sighed and returned the sentiment.

“Leia, is it okay if Muzet’s with you until we're all ready to go?”

“Yeah, sure. I was getting kinda lonely anyway,” Leia beamed and motioned for Muzet to enter her room. “See you in a bit, Ludger!” She closed her door as Ludger waved back at her. He only had to walk down the hallway a little bit to reach his room. He knocked on the door, announcing his return before opening it. He blinked when he only saw Alvin and Jude in the room. Walking in, he set the bakery bag on an empty space of the end table.

“Where’d Erston and Rowen go?” Ludger inquired as he pulled out one cinnamon apple and one blackberry croissant for Jude and Alvin. Jude took his with thanks before taking a bite of it.

“They said they were going to the lobby, you didn't see them?”

“No, must have passed them on the way in. Muzet was distracting me,” Ludger admitted, watching Alvin inspect his croissant before taking a bite of his.

“Muzet’s back? Where is she?”

“With Leia right now. I stopped by her room first.” Ludger shrugged his shoulders. “I guess I'll go see them down there.”

“We're almost done, we'll be down in a minute,” Alvin informed him as he went back to his task of apparently primping his hair. Ludger let out a small snort of laughter before grabbing the bag and leaving, waving off Alvin’s demands to know why he snickered. Back to the lobby he went, meeting up with Leia and Muzet along the way.

Once Ludger was in the lobby, it didn't take him long to find the king and his advisor. They were off to the side under a window, sipping what looked like to be tea provided by the inn.

“Hey, I bought some croissants for breakfast. There’s a powdered sugar covered chocolate one, one that’s got blackberries and one with cinnamon apples in it. Take your pick,” Ludger said, taking the remaining three from the bag and placing them on the table. Rowen took the apple cinnamon one with a pleased thank you while Gaius took the chocolate filled one. Ludger grinned as he grabbed the last one. “Didn’t take you for having a thing for sweets, Erston,” Ludger teased. Muzet came floating by, settling between Gaius and Ludger.

“Only if they're from you, Ludger. He would never touch them from anyone else.” She smirked at Gaius, causing him to almost choke on his tea. Ludger thought he saw a blush on the king’s face after the comment, and he was certain his own ears were burning from embarrassment.

“Muzet, how many times have I requested that you do not say such things?” Gaius all but sighed at her.

“Well, you should know by now that I don't _always_ listen to what you say. Besides, it’s true, isn't it?”

“Muzet,” Gaius began again, sounding more threatening this time, “this is not the time nor place.”

“You're so mean, Gaius,” she huffed before teasingly playing with his hair. They all turned around when they heard Alvin and Leia’s laughter.

“Nice to see you again, Muzet,” Alvin said, grin still wide.

“Alvin! And Jude!” She flew right past the taller man and encompassed Jude in a large hug. “My, my, I think you've gotten taller!”  
  
“Muzet, please,” Jude groaned, trying to pry himself away from her death grip. “It’s only been a month since you last saw me.”

“Aww, you could _try_ to sound a bit more excited to see me,” she pouted, feigning offense.  
  
“Ahem,” Rowen suddenly interjected. “I hate to break up this… _touching_ reunion, but we all must make haste for the docks. Our ferry leaves soon.”

Everyone finally quieted down as they took Rowen’s advice and left for the ferry.

The ride to Fennmont was uneventful at best. The waters were calm and there was only a thin veil of clouds as they passed through the slowly disappearing spirit climes. Midday faded to the exquisite beauty of Fennmont’s night clime as they approached the city. Ludger found himself just looking up at the night sky the remainder of the trip, only stirred out of his distraction by the others a few times.

The ship docked and they all departed, heading to the the Laforte Laboratories in the research district of the city. Jude lead the way and was able to clear them all through with the sentry stationed outside. Ludger had only been inside of the labs in a fractured dimension. They never had had much of a reason to go there beforehand. From what he could remember, it looked pretty much the same.

“The examination room I'll be using is in the other wing. This way,” Jude motioned them all to follow him, despite how crowded their group made it. Other scientists greeted Jude, and some recognized Gaius, as they went up a flight of stairs to one of rooms. Jude lead them to the left and opened the door, revealing a two tiered room. “Okay Ludger, we're going to have you step into one of these chambers. Pick whichever one you want,” Jude motioned to the six cylindrical machines that lined either side of the room.

Ludger eyed them with some trepidation, despite trusting Jude. After deciding on the one nearest to the door, he went to stand by it. “Ready when you are,” he said.  
  


Jude nodded then climbed the ladder to the upper floor of the room. Alvin followed him up while everyone else stayed down near Ludger. Jude began to type on what Ludger assumed was a type of computer or monitor. “Alright, everything’s all set here. Go ahead and enter the tube,” Jude called down.

Ludger steeled himself for whatever was to come as he got into the tube. He never thought of himself as claustrophobic but he didn't like how confined he felt in there, let alone having everyone watching him as Jude started up the tests.

The cylindrical tank began to fill with what Ludger assumed was some sort of mana conducting liquid. He was nervous at first, but then he felt charged as the liquid enveloped him, causing him to float a little. He could hear the muffled sounds of the others talking amongst themselves. As Jude started the first analytical test, a small buzz of electricity shot through his body. At first it startled him, it wasn't something he expected for this test but then again, he never thought to ask Jude just what was going to happen.  The second buzz felt a little more pleasant than before and by the time the third one rolled around he was feeling extremely docile. The mutterings outside of the tank were even less intelligible than before and Ludger found himself not minding in the least what they were saying.

He almost missed the one or two concerned looks in his direction. Before he could have the chance to doze off, Jude drained the tube of the soothing liquid. Ludger stepped out after the level was low enough, taking the towel Leia offered to dry off the remaining droplets. Whatever liquid he had been in, it had seemed to have evaporated quickly. His senses were quickly returning to normal.

Jude came down the ladder after Alvin and approached the now placid Ludger. “Well, I can say with a certainty that you're not human. At least, not in the Elympion sense anymore,” he said, scrunching up his features in confusion.

Ludger furrowed his brows a little, the words not registering right away. “Wait. Not… human?” He approached Jude, his frown growing. “Then what am I?”

Everyone exchanged worried looks as Jude continued. “Uhm… well, after I took note of the high levels of mana in your body, I decided to run a scan, and I found a mana lobe.”

“So I'm magically Rieze Maxian now?” Ludger only became more confused.

Jude presented the information as gingerly as he could. “Not quite. Your lobe is pretty small compared to the average Reize Maxian,” he said, pointing to his own head. “You shouldn’t be able to cast those powerful spirit artes you've been using. Honestly, based on your readings, I’d say you're a spirit more than anything.”

“Our Ludger here, a spirit?” Muzet floated around Ludger, examining closely. “I see what you mean about the mana. He has a lot more energy in him than any of you humans.”

Jude tried to put the conversation back on track, noticing that Ludger wasn't very appreciative of her scrutinizing stare. “Possibly, possibly not. I can't tell with this equipment.”

A spirit? _Him?_  “So then I assume that means you want to run more tests?” Ludger asked as he shifted his weight nervously, Muzet’s gaze still on him. None of this made any sense to him, and based on some of the slack-jawed looks his friends were giving him, they didn’t get it either.

“Yeah, but we'll have to go to Helioborg. I have equipment there can can take more in depth data.”

“We can depart for Marksburg in the morning. After that weird test, I think Ludger needs to rest before we go anywhere,” Leia chimed in.

Alvin placed a hand on Ludger’s shoulder. “You gonna be okay?”  
  
Ludger wasn't sure if it was the shocking results of the test or the test itself that exhausted him, but he was struggling to hold himself upright. He lightly shook his head. “Rest sounds like a good idea.”

The rest agreed and Jude lead the way out of the labs with Alvin supporting Ludger in the back.

Ludger slowly regained his ability to walk on his own as they neared the inn. Alvin released him, announcing that he would grab some supplies for tomorrow’s trip. Rowen offered to join him as well as Muzet, who had been complaining before hand that she couldn't find any cute hairpins. Leia took the lead with Jude, leaving Gaius near Ludger incase his legs happened to give out. When they got to the inn, Leia and Jude handled the reservations while Ludger and Gaius waited in the lobby.

“I think I'm alright now. You don't need to babysit me, so you're free to go with Alvin and the others,” Ludger sat in one of the chairs, looking up at Gaius who was nearby.

“I am aware. If I had intended to shop with them, I would have gone with them at the time of their departure,” Gaius was carefully watching him, no doubt looking for any signs of extreme tiredness or distress. Ludger found it endearing. “Of course, if you wish to be left alone, I can leave.”

Ludger shook his head. “No, I don’t mind,” he smiled a little, “I just don't want to be babied.” Ludger leaned forward just enough to be able to poke Gaius in the arm for emphasis. Gaius huffed.

“I am not babying you. I am simply making sure that you're alright.”

“Uh-huh,” Ludger teased, sounding not at all convinced. They entered a bit of a friendly staredown which ended when Leia and Jude walked up.

“Uh… something wrong?” Leia asked cautiously.

Ludger chuckled lightly as Gaius replied. “It is nothing. I assume you were able to get rooms?”

“That’s a load of crock but I’ll let it slide for now and corner you later,” Leia called Gaius out, Ludger snorting at her response. “But yeah, we were able to get three rooms so plenty of space!” She beamed.

“He’s telling the truth, Leia,” Ludger responded to her earlier accusation.

“I still think it’s a load of crock and a journalist’s intuition’s always right!”

Jude sighed and handed them all keys to their rooms. “The girls are all going to stay in room 15 while we’re splitting up between rooms 23 and 27.” Ludger nodded, getting up just slow enough to not lose his balance. Just before he could leave to claim a bed in one of the rooms, he heard Alvin and the others return. He would have kept moving if not for the little voice of a girl he loved very much.

“L...Ludger?”

He froze and turned to the owner of the timid and slightly fearful voice. Elle was watching him with dubious eyes, unsure whether to trust him or not.

“Elle…?” Ludger breathed out. He began to slowly approach her but she backed away from him.

“Is this like with Milla? Are you… Are you really Ludger? My Ludger?” Her small feet were ready to run. Whether to him or away from him, he couldn't tell yet.

What he did know is that he hated seeing her like this-- he hated seeing the worry and sorrow behind her eyes. He wanted to dispel her fear and distrust as soon as possible. He offered a disarming smile, continuing the rest of the way to her. She was on guard the whole time he walked to her, and he couldn't blame her. Once he reached Elle, he knelt down and hugged her. It was a light and gentle hug, easy enough for her to break contact if she wanted. When she didn’t immediately reject the embrace, he sighed.

“I missed you so much, Elle.”

He felt her sag, then shake with all of the emotions she had tried to keep bottled up. Ludger rubbed her back as sympathetically as he could as he heard strangled sobs start to come forth.

“I-I missed you too, stupid head…” she mumbled, sniffling into his shoulder. Ludger couldn't help but hum amusedly at the name calling. He supposed he deserved it.

Ludger tilted his head so that only Elle could really hear him. “I am so sorry, Elle. I know this is hard. And I don't expect you to accept me right now.”  
  
“You,” she hiccuped through another sob, “You just look really funny.”

Ludger laughed softly.  “I do, don’t I?” He looked up away from her and finally spotted Elize standing by Alvin, her gaze switching between Elle and Ludger. “We were all just figuring out sleeping arrangements,” he began again, a bit more loudly this time, “Did you want to stay with Elize and the other girls for tonight?”

Elle pulled away from him and rubbed at the tears clinging to her cheeks. Her sniffles had calmed down enough to let her speak normally. “Yeah, I'll do that.”

Ludger nodded his head and stood up. He smiled at Elize and gave her a proper greeting. “Good to see you too, Elize.”

She matched his grin. “Hi, Ludger! I'm so glad to see you again.”

Ludger had to admit he was impressed with her reaction upon seeing him again. Then again, she had a lot more time to get used to the idea of him coming back to life.

Alvin cleared his throat a little to get everyone’s attention. “While I'm enjoying this reunion as much as the next person, I'm pretty sure Ludger needs to get some shut eye.”

  
Ludger nodded in agreement, patting Elle on her head briefly before walking toward the hallway. “Yeah, I think I’ll just go ahead and go to sleep now. I’ll see you all in the morning then.” He waved a little as he put more distance between them. At this point, he didn't really care who was going to room with him. Ludger walked about halfway down the hall until he got to room 23, opening it with his key. As expected, the room had two beds. Ludger just headed straight for the nearest one, already starting to doze off as soon as he hit the sheets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So This chapter is far longer than we thought it was going to be and far more of a hassle to boot. I'm not 100% happy with it, I doubt Asch is either but we're eager to move on so yeah. I wrote about... 89% of the first half of the fic then about 70% for the second half, Asch did an amazing job with that 11 and 30% Seriously she's more talented than I am. Anyway we hope you enjoy this and we'll try to crank out another chapter soon, we're still trying to get some of the timeline bits straight so bare with us. As always comments are super appreciated and if you want to write/draw soemthign from this WE WOULD LOVE TO SEE/KNOW ABOUT IT. Seriously it would make our days that much brighter.


	5. Lively Step

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO WE'RE REALLY VERY SORRY THAT IT'S BEEN 2 MONTHS since the last chapter, we've both been either super hecka busy or (in my case mostly) lost the muse to write. We've already sorta started on the next chapter so with any luck, that'll come out sooner. AND CHECK OUT OUR FIRST FANART FROM THE LOVELY CHRONOSISAKITTY 
> 
> SERIOUSLY, YOU MADE OUR DAY, LOVE.

[This is the lovely post to the lovely art](http://chronosisakitty.tumblr.com/post/116148718227/i-said-i-was-gonna-do-and-i-did-it-this-is-for)

* * *

He felt disconnected; detached from the world, from his friends, from his body. This couldn’t be happening. It _shouldn’t_ be happening… He should be with the others, with Elle.  He should preparing for the day before they continue on the journey ahead.

 

_Anger._

_Betrayal._

_Depression._

_Regret._

_Defeat._

The soul numbing acceptance of being utterly alone.

 

The darkness enveloped him again, his only friend in the betwixt of worlds, of dimensions. How cruel the wheels of fate were, to throw him back into the state of nothingness.

 

Or maybe it had all been a dream, a way to cope with his inability to ever see them again.

 

_**You’re not dead. Not yet anyway.** _

 

He had heard this voice before, felt this presence before. Loaming, lording, larger than life.

 

_Who are you? What’s going on?_ The voiceless projection echoed through the darkness of the void.

 

_**Forgot me already? I’m insulted, kid.**_  There was a pressure pushing, blowing back his consciousness, showing the power of the mysterious entity. Ludger felt the haze in it memory lift ever so slightly. It was on the tip of his intangible tongue. He knew who this was but… the name eluded, evaded, revoked to be invoked. The more he thought the more he could see, if he was stuck here again then he could take all the time he needed.

 

_**Ah-ah. It’s time for you to wake up now.** _

 

He was thrown back, far far away from that place of indescribable solitude. A shell of an imposing figure rapidly shrunk from sight before it all faded away.

 

_Wait--!_

  
  


~~~                  ~~~

~~~                 ~~~

~~~                  ~~~

~~~~

Ludger slowly opened his eyes, faint images of his dream fluttering by before being completely lost. He exhaled in a sigh as he came to full alertness. He didn’t move from laying on his stomach, still trying to recall his dream only to have lost every bit of it. The sound of muffled snoring caused him to tilt his head to the right. It was hard to tell in the dark, but he identified his roommate to be none-other than Gaius, sounding like he was actually asleep again. Soft moonlight peeked through a crack in the curtains, letting Ludger know that he had woken up in the middle of the night again. He supposed he was just going to get used to this. Ludger pushed himself up off of the bed after a few moments, bored of just laying there doing nothing. He knew he should just stay put and wait for the others to wake up. He knew that the idea of leaving the room to go fight monsters outside of town was a terrible idea. Ludger knew full well that it was a bad idea but he reasoned that he needed to know how to handle battles by himself.

 

He stretched his arms high above his head, hearing the joints pop as they relieved some pressure, before walking over to the small light from the window to write a message incase something happened. It was simple and to the point, he hoped that nothing bad was going to happen on his excursion. He left the note on the nightstand between the beds before quietly exiting the room.

 

Fennmont didn’t look much different from the day time, the main difference being that there was almost no one out in the streets. Ludger skirted around the fountain in the main plaza, watching it for a few moments before heading out along the Barnauer Highroad. The highroad was as devoid as people as Fennmont was, which is just what Ludger wanted in these odd hours of the night. He ran around, eventually finding two monsters to combat. He focused on the stronger Antler Beak, taking it out with the speed of his blades. The weaker Scorpion circled around, looking for an opportunity to strike. Ludger backed away, putting tremendous distance between the two of them. The lumbering beast shifted its direction and began its pursuit, moving only marginally faster than most tortoises.

 

Ludger exhaled and concentrated. He knew it was weak to fire, he had used a fire spell before but he knew he could do better. Flames, hot, burning, soothing, life, death, destroy, create; it was a clunky system. He would think of things to describe the element to help him try to form the spirit arte. Muzet had teased him about overthinking it, but it wasn’t like he had any real frame of reference. He knew he needed to be faster at casting, it might cost them their lives if he wasn’t. He felt the energetic wisps  of mana as the spell started to form. Instead of letting it lose as soon as he could, which was what he had been doing, he held on to it, trying to bolster its power. The scorpion was almost close enough to him to attack, alarming him slightly. It raised it’s claw, intending to strike and disrupt Ludger’s hard work. Ludger cast the arte fervently.

 

“Firestorm!” The scorpion launched into the air in a tornado of flames, dying shortly after. Ludger stood there a moment, basking in the knowledge that he had just cast a higher level arte. His mouth tugged back into a large grin as he calmed down from the fight. He just needed to practice more, just needed to be quicker. He was so enthralled by his accomplishment that he didn’t hear another person approach. He nearly jumped out of his skin when Gaius spoke.

 

“What are you doing out here?”

 

“I-I uh… you didn’t see the note?”

 

“I did, but you neglected to specify why you came out here in the first place.”

 

Ludger did recall that he forgot to write that down. It didn’t seem important at the time. “Oh, sorry. I just wanted to try to hone my artes better. Y’know? Get faster at casting them and such. I look like a tortoise compared to everyone else,” Ludger let out a breezy laugh to which Gaius returned with a smile.

 

“They have also had the ability to cast artes for far longer than you have. It is unfair to compare your aptitude to theirs. Here, how about you test yourself against me? The battle experience could prove to be advantageous to us both.” Ludger couldn’t see a flaw with Gaius’ logic. He needed to get better at his new skills, needed to know what he could do to improve. Gaius was a superb opponent.

 

Ludger grinned, taking a defensive stance to see Gaius opening move, “Sounds great, just go easy on me.”

 

A sly grin crossed Gaius’ face as he began the engagement, hounding Ludger as would a true enemy would in combat. He made sure to never injure him, but the stoic king knew Ludger wasn’t going to get better if he coddled him. Ludger never complained, anytime he was knocked down he’d get right back up and they’d start their little dance again.

 

After the twelfth attempt, Gaius offered that they stop for now. Ludger got up on tired legs, cast First Aid on himself, and snorted amusedly at the thought of stopping, “I just want to land one hit, just one hit on you before we head back.”

 

Gaius huffed and raised his sword, entering his typical battle stance. “If you insist. However, if you cannot land a blow on me within the next ten rounds, we will retire back to the inn.”

 

Ludger nodded, formulating a strategy on how to best his battle seasoned compatriot. Gaius lunged forward before he feinted to the left, reading his sword for a swift strike. Ludger only had moments to block and deflect the oncoming sword with his own. The force of it threw him back, much like when he fought Julius before, allowing a large enough gap to form between them. Ludger backed up to widen the gap more as Gaius sent two waves of Demon Fang racing toward him before pursuing Ludger. Ludger rolled to the right and began immediately to start casting a spirit arte, anything he could hold on to. The feeling of fire surpassed him, evolving into something that was larger. It was as though the feeling he got of Firestorm and First Aid melded together, something that the same warmth, same intensity that both spells happened to have. Ludger found it hard to explain before it hit him. Light. The feeling of fire and healing melded together to form life giving light. Ludger clutched on to it, focusing on its manifestation as Gaius closed in on him.

 

If only he was able to get it a second sooner.

 

The arte’s invocation fell from his lips as a friendly blade pointed at his throat. A moment passed before Gaius lowered his blade, smirking triumphantly. Ludger pouted, “I almost had you. Let’s do it again.”

 

And so they repeated. Gaius took much of the same tactics as before but was sure to move faster than before. Ludger took the first chance he got to cast the new arte, bellowing out the name as swords of light rained upon Gaius.

 

“Eclair de Larmes!”

 

Gaius couldn’t dodge in time, suffering a minor blow to his health in the grand scheme of things. They both stood there for a moment, processing what had just transpired. Ludger broke out into a jubilant grin, raising his fist in the air gleefully. Gaius couldn’t help but watch Ludger’s exuberance, letting the younger man celebrate for a moment longer before insisting they return to the inn. Ludger agreed, though asserted he’d like to spar with Gaius again should their journey allow it. Gaius promised him that should the opportunity arise, he would gladly spar with him.

 

They talked on the way back, Ludger holding the lion’s share of the conversation only because he was still enthused about besting Gaius. Gaius, of course, would keep Ludger’s head from getting too large by making a quick retort. They were trading friendly jibes when they walked into Fennmont’s fountain plaza, drawing minor attention from the early rising residents as they passed through. The few who recognized Gaius for who he was looked horrified when Ludger made a particularly scathing remark, oblivious to the panic he was starting to cause. Looks of horror turned to looks of bewilderment when Gaius just smirked and effectively ended their little verbal spar.

 

Ludger just sighed and told Gaius he’ll corner him next time. By the time they entered the inn, they were laughing.

 

Alvin’s gaze darted over to the laughter echoing in the lobby as he sipped on his god-graced caffeinated beverage. He laughed when Gaius noticed him and quickly quieted his amusement. Ludger noticed too and called Gaius out on it, causing the usually taciturn man to huff before making a cheeky comment. Alvin and Ludger both gawked a now smug looking Gaius while Jude stifled some laughter.  

 

Muzet and a still-waking-up Leia walked out into the lobby next, trying to figure out just what was going on. Muzet started to badger Gaius about his smirk and when that yielded no results, she moved on to Ludger. To his credit, Ludger dodged Muzet’s questions fairly well; she ended up stopping her interrogation and resorted to pouting about it. Ludger swore he heard Muzet threaten about getting the truth but he sincerely hoped it was him imagination. Jude must have heard it as well because Ludger saw him trying to make sure she didn’t plan anything drastic.

 

Elize, Elle and Rowen were the last to join them, Elle looked like she had just woken up. Ludger couldn’t help but smile softly at her, at them all really. He watched everyone talk, suddenly overcome with gratitude. He shouldn’t have been able to return, to come back to all of his friends like this…

 

To come back to his daughter.

 

And yet, there was some being that apparently held more power or will or whatever was needed to bring Ludger back, albeit a bit different from before. He wondered what the catch could be; there was no way that someone just brought him back out of the kindness of their heart.  He wondered if it was whoever talked to him in some of his dreams but by the time he’d realize what was happening in them, he didn’t have enough time to inquire about anything.

 

**You want to talk?** A familiar, dark chuckle echoed through Ludger’s mind, causing him to drop his smile and take on a look of confusion.

 

_I...I guess? First of all, who the heck are you and how are you talking to me right now?_

 

**Still haven’t remembered me, I see. I suppose I can forgive you on that. You only met me once, after all.**

 

**So, to answer your first question, I am the Great Spirit Pluto.** Ludger could practically feel Pluto’s smug smirk, something unsettling in and of itself. Another chuckle followed before Pluto spoke again, **As to how I’m speaking to you, it should be pretty obvious.**

 

Ludger’s brows furrowed slightly before relaxing again. He just wanted some straight answers from the Great Spirit but it seemed like he was having too much fun to care. _If you mean the fact this is telepathy, then yeah okay I get it. But other than that? No idea. So, are you going to help me out at all? Like tell me just what the heck I am since I can only assume you some how let me come back?_

 

**I suppose I could but that would defeat the whole ‘learning experience’ thing I want you to go through. Besides, what fun would it be if I just told you?**

 

Ludger sent the most exasperated sigh he could manage without physically making one. _Could you at least tell me something about this then? Any sort of hint?_

 

**I suppose I could since you asked so nicely.**  Ludger felt Pluto’s tone shift from one of the jesting and teasing to one of possible dire consequences.

 

**Don’t let your guard down or your life will be forfeit again. Get on that ferry as soon as you can.**

 

_Or what? What will happen if we don’t? Hey! Answer me!!_ It was of no use, Pluto refused to answer any of Ludger’s replies. He had been so concentrated on his conversation, or lack there of, with Pluto that he hadn’t noticed that everyone was staring at him now, some of them looking extremely concerned. Ludger was almost afraid to ask why.

 

Jude spoke first when it seemed like Ludger had snapped out of trance like state, “You okay, Ludger? You’ve been just gazing off into the distance for a good while now.”

 

Ludger glanced to the side, looking a little bashful as he smiled reassuringly, “Yeah, sorry about that. It was nothing, I’m fine.”

 

“You sure about that? Your eyes changed color a bit. It was a little unsettling,” Leia had spoken up this time, looking concerned while Alvin behind her looked skeptical.

 

“They… changed color?” Confusion was evident as he looked to the others for further clarification.

 

“Yeah! That light gold inlay around your eyes changed to like a silvery-lilac for a while. And you were just staring blankly for a good majority of it!” Leia motioned to her own eye when she spoke.

 

“Well, that really is weird… But I can promise you, Leia, that I’m just fine,” he grinned broadly to assure her but he knew they all suspected he was lying. Ludger didn’t want to worry them, especially if who he was hearing in his head wasn’t really Pluto. Not to mention, they’d probably all have trouble believing him. Ludger changed the subject, hoping to deflect any more questions about his previous state, “We should head to the dock right? The ferry will be leaving soon.”

 

“You are correct. We can continue this on the trip over,” Rowen hummed. Ludger did hate it how the old man could foil his excuses. Ludger sighed and followed his comrades out to the boarding dock. It didn’t take them long to get through and on to the ship bound for Marksburg.

 

Ludger only suffered a few more questions from his comrades before Muzet changed the subject. “This reminds me of when we traveled before. We’re just missing Milla!” Ludger knew that Muzet had a bit of trouble matching her tone to her words which resulted in the occasional misunderstanding.

 

Jude’s eyes cast downwards, a sad smile tugged at his lips, “Yeah, I’m sure she’d like to be here.”

 

The ferry let out a departing holler of its horn before finally leaving the seahaven. A thoughtful hum came from Muzet, stirring the majority of them out of their thoughts, “Well, I suppose it was pretty impolite of me to just leave her there for so long… Especially when she asked me to check in with her as soon as I knew what was going on.”

 

The only two that weren’t gaping at Muzet incredulously were Rowen and Gaius.

 

“Ya mean to tell me you could’ve, oh I don’t know, gotten the whole crew back together this whole time?!” Alvin bellowed, expressing their collective exasperation.

 

Muzet’s gaze zeroed in on Alvin, narrowing a little in annoyance. “It’s perfectly possible. No one asked me to try so I saw no reason to discuss it. Besides, there’s no guarantee I could transport Milla with me.”

 

Alvin rubbed the back of his head while Jude took the initiative in the conversation, “Maybe you could try? We’ll be on this ship for a few hours so you can teleport back and fill Milla in.”

 

“Yeah, and then you two can see if it’s possible to teleport back through your dimensional rifts or if Milla will have to find another way to cross over,” Ludger commented. Muzet was still looking very thoughtful yet not convinced. Ludger sighed a little, “Please, Muzet?” He knew the spirit could be a little fickle sometimes.

 

Muzet’s face lit up with a beaming grin as she sweetly spoke,” Why Ludger! I thought you’d never ask! C’mon, we’ll be back in a jiffy!” She floated over to him with an amused grin, tugging on his arm.

 

Ludger blinked, confused at first and trying to protest against her hold, “W-wait I didn’t say that I wanted to go with you, let alone know if I could!”

 

Muzet just ignored him, still beaming happily. “It won’t take too long, we’ll be back before you reach Marksburg!” Before anyone could intervene, Muzet tore a rift and went through it with a flabbergasted Ludger.

 

Ludger wished he could close his eyes for the short journey to the spirit world, though he knew Muzet would tease him for being cowardly if she saw him. He didn’t know what he expected the spirit realm to look like. Rieze Maxia was already shocking in its beauty. But this…

 

This was more breathtaking than any place he visited before.

 

Verdant fields that stretched for infinity were painted with intricate, colorful flowers and strong, inspiring trees. There was nothing man-made, nothing like the cold metallic place Ludger calls home. A soft breeze ruffled his hair and before he knew it a kid -- no a spirit -- stood in front of him.

 

“So this is the guy? Doesn’t look like much.”

 

Ludger blinked, speechless as he stared back at who he could only assume to be the Great Spirit of Wind.

 

“Muzet, you sure you didn’t break him on your way here?” Sylph waved his hand in front of Ludger’s eyes for a moment before circling around him real fast, catching Ludger off guard with the slight push of wind as he turned to follow Sylph’s movement.

 

Muzet crossed her arms and huffed, “I did no such thing. You’re so mean, Sylph! Just be nice to him while I go get Milla.” She floated away, leaving Ludger with Sylph.

 

Sylph turned his attention back on Ludger once Muzet was out of sight, “So what? Are you mute or something?”

 

“Wha- no, no! I’m not mute.”

 

“Then why are you standing there like a gaping fish? It’s not like you haven’t seen spirits before,” Sylph crossed her arms while watching Ludger’s response.

 

Before Ludger could answer, the ground raised around his feet, circling around. Ludger stumbled backwards, trying to figure out just what the heck was happening.

 

“So this is the new guy!” A cheery voice came forth as another spirit erupted from the ground in front of Ludger. The childlike voice belonged to none other than Gnome, who was smiling up at him. “Huh, you look just Ludger.”

 

Ludger chuckled a little while Sylph gave an exasperated sigh, “That’s because it _is_ Ludger.”

 

Gnome ignored Sylph’s peeved remark to look at Ludger with amazement, “But Origin made you cease to exist after your wish! I’m not upset that you’re back though, just perplexed!” The bubbly spirit wiggled happily as a calm voice came up behind him.

 

“I should hope not, Ludger’s a dear friend after all.” Ludger turned around to see Undine with Efreet approaching them. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Sylph floating around boredly. He had never been able to talk to them face to face like this before.

 

Ludger smiled at the two of them as a welcome. “I’m surprised you’d call me a friend even though we’ve hardly spoken.”

 

Efreet let out a small, amused laugh, “But why wouldn’t we? You’ve traveled with Milla, protecting her just as we have. We’re brothers in arms, and now it seems, in kin.”

 

“Wait, what? What do you mean by ‘in kin’?” Ludger looked to Efreet for clarification.

 

Before the intimidating spirit could answer, Sylph piped back up, “It means you’re a spirit like us, dummy!” Udine chastised Sylph for being so brusque while Efreet nodded.

 

“That’s… that just sounds crazy. I mean I know I’m able to use spirit artes now and all but that doesn’t mean that… that I’m…” Ludger’s words trailed off. He wasn’t upset; he didn’t hate the idea of being a spirit. At least, not in the Rieze Maxian sense. Though as much as he tried, he couldn’t stop thinking of the more Elympion meaning of the word; something fabled and intangible, a ghost.

 

It was then when Muzet returned with Milla, who was fondly looking at them all. She skipped the pleasantries and dove right into analyzing. “Efreet is correct. Somehow you were able to be brought back as a spirit.”

 

Ludger looked a little lost. He wasn’t sure how to take that. Wouldn’t he just fade away then? Like Celcius did? He looked down at his hands, flexing them as his thoughts swirled.

 

Milla moved to catch his eyes as she continued, “I suppose I should explain it better since this news seems to be troubling you. Yes, you were brought back as a spirit, though not wholly.” Ludger sometimes wondered if Milla knew the meaning of ‘explain’ or ‘simplify’.

  
“So what does that mean? What am I then?” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was almost 4000 words I hope you know, most done by moi; Asch has been suuuuuuuuuuper busy the last two months. Anyways, we love comments as always so please leave something if you could~


	6. Of Spirits and Pain

Ludger looked at all of their faces, searching for an answer.

Undine seemed to be the one to answer first, “You’re more human than a spirit, yet are more a spirit than any Rieze Maxian. You’re in between the two, possessing traits of both.”

“Which makes you extremely unique!” Muzet chimed amusedly. All of the other spirits also nodded with her statement.

Ludger just stood there for a second before raising his hands and looking down at them, clenching and unclenching his fists. He felt a surge of different emotions well up, causing him to momentarily zone out.

It seemed like Undine was the first to catch on to his discomfort. She moved closer to him, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder as she spoke, “I know it’s a lot to take in, especially given we don’t know the reasons for why this happened.” She moved around a little to catch his eye and offer a smile, “But whatever the reason is, it’s allowed you to be with your friends again, right?”

Ludger looked back at her and nodded a little, his voice feeling lost in the emotions swirling in his mind. He heard Sylph scoff a little from somewhere behind him but Ludger paid her no mind.

“Do you happen to know who might have done this to you?” Efreet spoke up next, stirring Ludger out of his thoughts.

“I imagine it was whoever you were talking to earlier,” Muzet noted, amusement clear in her voice. Ludger really didn’t give her enough credit.

“I- Yeah, it was. It was Pluto, you remember when we fought him?” Ludger watched as Milla and Muzet nodded.

Muzet shrugged, sighing, “He did always like to meddle, or so I’m told.”

“Perhaps we should ask him,” Milla rose her hand as he called to Pluto, summoning him to the plane.

A black vortex touched down from the sky, hiding the Great Spirit from within. Ludger didn’t want to admit it, but he was honestly still intimidated by Pluto. He was happy that Udine and Efreet were close to him since they seemed to have a soothing effect on him.

The vortex broke, revealing the omnipotent spirit in all of his imposing apparel. His skeletal face scanned the sight before him, obviously assessing as to why he had been summoned. Pluto finally let out an amused hum, relaxing his stance a bit at the same time. **“Ah, Maxwell. It’s been a few months hasn’t it? Looking as great as ever. You as well, Muzet.”**

“I’m sure you know why I called you here.”

**“About the boy?”** A large bony hand pointed at Ludger before dropping.

“Yes. Could you please shed light as to why you brought him back?”

**“I could. But to be quite frank with you, Maxwell, I don’t particularly feel like divulging details.”** He shrugged, disinterested in the mildly appalled looks he received.

Milla frowned and put her hand on her hip, “Why not? Is there some reason you refuse to discuss your actions?”

**“You could say that,”** Pluto turned his attention to Ludger, **“No offense, kid, but I’d rather not tell you why. I want to see what you plan to do with what I gave you.”**

Ludger bristled a little, “So I’m just some sort of experiment to you then? That’s the only reason you brought me back?”

**“Yes,”** Pluto tilted his head to the side, watching as Ludger’s irritation grew. The skeletal spirit scoffed and shook his head, **“Don’t misunderstand my bringing you back for kindness. I could have easily bestowed this to any of your rag-tag team. Only reason you got picked because I thought it might piss off Chronos if he found out. I already told you that I couldn’t care less about all of you. You’re just mortals after all.”**

Udine looked just as displeased as Ludger felt, but she remained quiet as well as all of the other great spirits. Ludger wanted to scream; his resurrection was only because of some stupid experiment that he had no idea about or what it entailed.

**“Get angry all you want kid, it doesn’t change the fact that _I_ brought you back.”**

Milla furrowed her brows, her voice stern as usual , “Pluto, that is enough.”

**“What? You think you’ll get me to tell him more? The old man couldn’t even keep me sealed properly so I don’t know what you think you’re going to do. If this is all you called me for then I dare say this conversation’s over.”** Pluto’s attention turned back to Ludger, **“I expect you to not get killed, because I won’t be bringing you back a second time.”**

“Why the hell should I listen to you when you’re not even going to tell me anything?” Ludger knew he would regret those rancor laced words, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care. He hated being just a pawn, even more so after Bisley. Ludger braced himself as eery scarlet eyes burrowed into what felt like his very soul.

**“Scion of Kresnik,”** Shivers ran down Ludger’s spine, the terror of angering the Great Spirit of the Underworld finally setting in, **“I have no qualms with returning you to the void that I dragged you out of. Do not think for a second that it is an idle threat.”**

Ludger doubled over and fell down, clutching his abdomen and closing his eyes as discomfort spread through his body. It felt like his entire being was trying to disintegrate. He barely registered any of the other spirits talking. He did feel a hand on his back, trying to help steady him.

_“That is enough, Pluto!”_

The discomfort lasted a moment longer before disappearing as quickly as it came. Ludger’s body untensed, thankful for the gentle hands that helped keep him upright. He managed to crack his eyes open only to widen them in horror at the state of his lower extremities. He barely heard Udine and Efreet try to calm him down as he watched his legs slowly rematerialize with what he assumed to be mana. Ludger sat in muted perturbation as little particles returned to him, slowly casting his gaze up to the very intolerant looking Pluto.

**“I best have made it clear that you currently exist for nothing more than my amusement,”** Pluto turned, leaving all of the other spirits glaring at his back. **“I’ll keep in contact, Ludger.”**

Ludger looked back down at his almost reformed legs when Pluto teleported away. The irritated voices of the other great spirits buzzed through the air, though Ludger hardly paid them any mind. After Ludger’s legs had reformed, Milla offered to help him stand up. Once he was back on his feet, he thanked Udine.

“Well now that that buzzkill is gone, we should probably get back to the ferry,” Muzet floated around the group, looking a little on the bored side.

“Yes. However, do you feel well enough to traverse back?”

Ludger nodded as Milla practically stared him down, seeing if he was lying. He just wanted to return, just wanted to forget what had just happened. He hated how helpless he felt; just like during Origin’s Trial.

The four great spirits once again swore their oath to Milla, transforming into their mana conserving forms so that they can be with her. Muzet opened a rift so that they all could return. Ludger just followed the two of them numbly, hardly phased by the turbulent return.

He kept up appearances, at least for a minute or so. He distanced himself from the others for a few minutes, then paced around the ship a little bit. Eventually, he settled along the railing, staring out at the deep blue sea.

It didn’t take a genius to notice that Ludger was even quieter than his usual self. He had done a good job disguising his perturbed state while explaining the whole situation to everyone. However, Pluto’s words continued to weigh on him and he had barely moved from his spot at the ship’s railings in the past hour.

Milla had done her best to comfort him but even she couldn’t understand the situation he was in. She had been a pawn for Maxwell but at least she had been given a purpose. Ludger here was just for someone’s amusement. He had no real reason for being brought back to the land of the living.

Elle had watched him from a distance for most of the ride. She contemplated approaching him but ultimately chose not to. His new appearance was still a bit unnerving but she still cared deeply for him. Maybe she should just walk over there and--

“Hello, Elle.” She jumped when Gaius’ strong voice appeared from behind her. “I see you’ve been watching Ludger. Do you worry about him?” he asked gently, kneeling down to meet her at eye-level.

Elle averted her gaze, kicking at the wooden planks beneath her feet. “He’s sad… isn’t he?”  
  


Gaius released a small sigh. “I do not blame him for his grievances. He is glad to be with us yet again, but not glad over how and why he is here.” He studied Ludger’s morose form, a frown upon his lips. “I myself have been trying to find a way to restore his previous mood, but I am not fond of any of my ideas.”  
  


Elle looked at him closely, then glanced back at Ludger, then back at him again. “You’re making it complicated.”  
  


Her assuredness took him by surprise. “What?”   
  


“Just talk to him. Ludger’s always been happy just listening to us talk. And you, well,” here her expression became a bit mischievous, “he likes listening to you talk the most.”  
  


Gaius certainly did _not_ sputter, “What do you mean by that?”  
  


Elle, sassy as ever, rolled her eyes. “Just go talk to him and see, silly.”

 

There wasn’t a time in his life Gaius could recall someone calling him silly. But he supposed there was a first time for everything. He also decided to ignore this offense for now. “If you truly insist.” He stood up and adjusted his clothes before making his way toward Ludger.

Surprisingly enough, Ludger heard him approaching. However, his greeting was merely a brief turn of the head and a quiet, “Hey.”

Gaius took his spot beside Ludger without hesitation. He was quiet at first, testing out different conversation starters in his head. It wasn’t often that King Gaius was at a loss for words, but further upsetting Ludger was the last thing he wanted. Finally he decided on, “Elle is worried about you. She wishes to see you smile.”

  
  
A sigh, then a soft response, “I don’t want to worry her. But…” He became quiet again, struggling to fit all of this thoughts into words.

“There is no need to explain.I understand your concerns.”

  
  
Ludger gave him a thankful nod. “I keep switching between anger, sadness and fear. The way Pluto treated me… I don’t matter to him at all. I can’t do anything against him, either. What’ll he do when he’s bored of me? Will I die again?”

  
  
Protectiveness arose within Gaius. “I will not let that spirit lay a single finger on you.”

Ludger’s heart responded to that declaration, beating loudly against his chest. The strength and certainty behind those words gave him his first sense of clarity all day. “Thank you.” A small smile. It was a start.

“There is no need to thank me. I speak for more than just myself when I say that I do not want to lose you again.” He shifted to better face his companion, and Ludger swore for a second that he saw fear in those eyes. “I cannot bear the thought of watching you die again.”

And there went Ludger’s heart again. “I…” He fumbled for a response. He couldn’t match Gaius’ eloquence but he could match his honesty. “I don’t plan on going anywhere.” He hoped his smile would convey the rest of his meaning.

  
  
Gaius grinned back at him. “I am glad to hear that.”

  
  
Ludger looked down at his hands resting on the railing, suddenly too embarrassed to continue staring into Gaius’ eyes. “I just wish I didn’t look like some freakish lab accident.”

 

“Nonsense. There is nothing wrong with your appearances.”

  
  
Ludger snorted in amusement, “You’re just saying that.”

  
  
“I’m being perfectly honest. Your eyes are more vibrant than before, and the longer hair suits you well.”

  
  
Ludger subconsciously played with the long strands, face quickly turning red. Maybe he wouldn’t cut it after all. “Er, thanks. Um, I like your hair too.”  Oh goodness, did he really just say that. Now Ludger remembered why he didn’t talk much.

  
  
However, Gaius didn’t tease him. He accepted the compliment with embarassment of his own. Clearing his throat, he said, “I...thank you.”

They talked for a while and Ludger had lost track of time. They had both managed to not say anything else that was particularly embarrassing, something Ludger was grateful for.

Talking to Gaius had certainly made him feel better. The dark despair that had been eating at him had been pretty much neutralized. Elle certainly seemed to notice this and had approached Ludger. To his amusement, she asked if he could braid her hair. Gaius had left, giving them space while Ludger had knelt down to gently twine Elle’s long strands of hair. She talked, mostly teasing him like she was prone to do. He moved to stand up once he was finished, only to be met with a little but firm grasp keeping him kneeling.

“I wanna do your hair,” Elle huffed when Ludger just gave her a momentary confused look. “Your hair’s long enough, I can braid it too.”

Ludger chuckled a little, sitting on the deck for ease of access, “Alright. Just don’t go too crazy.”

“Like you could stop me if I did,” she teased back before getting to work.

Ludger sat there in comfortable silence, letting Elle do what she wished. He figured she couldn’t get too carried away. He listened to Elle talk, only making a small sound if she happened to pull too hard.

Ten minutes later and Elle proudly announced she was done. Ludger didn’t need a mirror to know his head was full of crooked, mostly loose braids with occasionally taut ones sticking out. A chuckle left Ludger as he gazed upon his extremely pleased daughter.

“What’s so funny?” she asked sceptically.

  
  
“Nothing. You did a great job.”

She huffed, beginning to walk away. She stopped and turned around after taking a few steps. “Don’t go removing them, ok? They took a lot of work!”

 

Ludger waved his hands at her in defense. “I won’t, I won’t!”

  
  
With that, she grinned again and walked away. Ludger definitely heard some muffled laughter in the distance, Alvin by the sound of it.

  
  
Ludger looked ahead of the ferry, the port of Marksburg finally coming into view.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (PBS voice) This Gaiger moment was brought to you by: the lovely Asch~  
> Abusing Ludger with a technically OOC-ish Pluto was brought to you by: Joveesia
> 
>  
> 
> Anywho sorry it's been a while, we've both been busy. Over all we enjoyed this <3 Please let us know what you think! Also if you wanto talk about your thoughts/what you think/want to see, drop us a line!


	7. Playing the Fool

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we're not dead just mostly dead... and busy. With any luck next chapter will be out sooner but thank you so much for your patience (Assuming anyone's still reading this tbh)
> 
> Title's from SMT Nocturne
> 
> As usual feel free to drop us a line :D

Marksburg was as busy as ever. Venders could be heard, shouting their wares to attract potential customers. Flashy stalls and equally vibrant people lined Marksburg’s spacious marketplace. Ludger had missed all of the hussle and bussle of the diverse city.

 

They made their way across the vast port, buying items as needed as they neared the station. Purchasing their tickets, they boarded the outgoing train shortly after.

 

The train itself reminded Ludger of the Stribog Line, though it wasn’t nearly as fancy. The ten of them took up two sections of seats, something that they were accustomed to doing. Their arrangement always changed, to keep things from getting too stodgy. This time around, Ludger happened to be sitting next to the window with Alvin next to him. Jude was on the end of their row, next to the aisle. Across from him sat Leia, with Gaius in the middle and Elle across from Jude. Milla, Muzet, Elize, and Rowen were behind them.

 

It wasn’t a long journey to Trigleph. They had made it plenty of times before so they knew just how short it was. It wasn’t even eight minutes into the trip and Jude was starting to use Alvin as support for his nap. No one commented on it since it was something they did frequently, although Leia was not so discreetly snapping a photo of them on her GHS. Alvin raised a very unamused eyebrow at her, causing her to quickly pocket the GHS with a bashful grin.

 

During that short exchange, an idea struck Ludger. He shared a momentary glance with Gaius so that the king was aware he was up to something. With a barely noticeable smile, Ludger moved so that his back was pressing against Alvin’s arm, using him as back support as he folded himself up in his seat. He then yawned, closing his eyes as if he were trying to also nap.

 

Ludger had to try to stifle a laugh at Alvin’s audible besetment as a slyly cracked eye looked toward Gaius for an indication of Alvin’s expression. To his dismay, it would seem he would have to wait for a recount of the ex-mercenary's demeanor. Though Ludger surmised that if anything, it was a look of grand annoyance as Alvin complained just loud enough for everyone at their table to hear, “That’s it, I’m not taking the middle seat next time. I’m not a damn mattress.” Ludger tried to not laugh as Alvin's complaints persisted.

 

Leia’s snort was easily heard, drawing Ludger’s attention to her. “You’re such a baby, Alvin. Here, Erston and I will move Luds over here so that you won’t be trapped anymore.”

 

“I might as well just wake him up then!”

  
“No! Don’t do _that_ you oaf!”

 

“If you two don’t lower your voices, they’ll both wake up,” Gaius responded, lightly teasing the two. He didn’t let on that he knew Ludger was completely awake and aware of Alvin’s distress.

 

“Well maybe I want him to wake up,” Alvin lowered his voice in a grumble, but not by much.

 

Leia sighed irately, motioning for Gaius to help her pick up Ludger. Ludger thought for a moment that maybe he should pretend to wake up, for Gaius’s sake if nothing else. On the other hand, he was curious to see if Gaius would out him or just roll along with the guise.

 

Ludger went with the latter of the two as he felt his body being moved. He tried to move subtly enough so that Gaius would have an easier time, but he had no idea if he was accomplishing his task or not.

 

It didn’t take long for his weight to set back down in the opposing chair over, his back being momentarily supported by Leia as Gaius took his seat once again. Ludger shifted to get comfier against the king’s arm, hearing another snap of a GHS from whom he could only assume to be Leia once again.

 

Ludger opened his eyes this time, smirking slightly as he looked over to the offending picture-taker.

 

“Wh-wha? You were awake?” she asked, baffled, GHS still in her hands.

 

“Yup. The whole time. I hardly even need to sleep anymore. Irritating Alvin just sounded like a lot of fun,” Ludger mused, staying comfortably against Gaius’s side. He tilted his head against Gaius’s arm, looking up at the king as he continued, “I actually thought you were going to rat me out for a moment there.”

 

“Honestly, I would have thought you know me better by now,” Gaius responded, glancing at Ludger with a small but amused smile.  
  
Alvin wanted to reach over the table and give Ludger a playful smack across the head but Jude, unlike Ludger, was still fast asleep against his side and he didn’t feel like waking the tired young man. “Since when did you become the prankster of the group?” he asked dryly instead.  
  
Ludger, Elle and Leia laughed together. There was just too much fun in a pouty Alvin.

 

A few more minutes of jovial discussion passed before Elle interjected, “Gee, Ludger, you sure are all cuddly over there.” Ludger hadn’t moved from his spot, still pressed comfortably against Gaius’ side.  
  
Leia leaned forward, getting a better look at her two friends. She smirked, agreeing, “Ooo~, we’ve got Alvin and Jude cuddling on one side, and Gaius and Ludger cuddling on the other!”

 

It was Ludger’s turn to be embarrassed, much to Alvin’s amusement. Gaius however was wholly unaffected. “No one’s stopping you from joining,” Ludger scoffed in an attempt to disguise his embarrassment.   
  
Leia shrugged, and was about to lean back softly in her seat when she changed trajectory and plopped against Gaius’ other side. She winked at Elle, and within moments, the younger girl let all of her weight fall onto Alvin’s side as well.  
  
Gaius and Alvin both groaned.  
  
The remainder of the trip flew by rather quietly as Leia and Elle actually did fall asleep. Ludger smiled at them, thinking once again how glad he was to be back.  
  
\--------------------

 

When they arrived at their destination a few hours later, the station was as lively as could be, people hopping from train to train to get wherever they needed to be. A passing glance at the railway map informed Ludger that the system was expanding, including cities of that had previously been cut off due to internal strife or environmental issues.

 

Trigleph hadn’t changed much. Ludger’s hometown still looked as metallic as ever, but there were far more patches of green than before. It made him smile as they passed by the park near his apartment.

 

The Trigleph apartments hadn’t changed much either. The crazy cat lady was still on the first floor and her cats were still audible through the door when one passed by. Ludger really hoped he wouldn’t have to go hunting for them again. He smiled as he passed, reaching the elevator with the others in tow.

 

His apartment hadn’t changed really, only a few things were different from when someone stayed with Elle for the first few weeks. He sighed, taking it all in again as he moved towards his room. The others all made themselves at home or left, something Ludger was completely fine with. They’d leave in a little bit for Helioborg, so Ludger planned on napping on his bed.

 

He told those who were left (Jude, Milla, Leia and Elle) what he was doing and they all promised to keep the noise level down. He only remembered them leaving a some point before drifting into a light doze.

 

_It’s quiet, but there is chatter all around_

_He’s alone, but faceless people fill the endless space_

_The ground shifts, changing at every moment and no one bats an eyelash_

_He’s talking with someone_

_They’re laughing, a familiar feeling_

_Closer they move, soft music plays_

_He leans down, he reaches up_

_Closer and closer still_

_They’re talking again, mumbling_

_So close…_

 

“---dger!”

 

The world shakes, the man falls away

Not down, not anywhere

 

“Ludger, wake up!”

 

Elle’s voice caused Ludger to stir just enough to roll over and bury his head under a pillow. He wasn’t fully awake yet, maybe he could still salvage the crumbling fantasy. He vaguely recalled hearing her huff as he caught a glimpse of the mysterious man.

 

A gentle hand touched Ludger’s arm, shaking him slightly. “Come now, Ludger, you’ve got to get up.” A gentle laugh followed, “If you don’t, I can’t promise what Miss Elle will do.”

 

Ludger groaned a little as he held the pillow tighter. He heard a little, irritated huff.

 

“Rowen! He’s not moving.”

 

A chuckle followed, “Then perhaps we need to try a different tactic.”

 

Footsteps pattered out of the room, leaving Ludger in comfortable silence once again. He let out a content sigh, assuming that Rowen might have just said that as an idle threat. Ludger turned more into the pillow, trying to follow after the whispers of sleep once again.

 

Ludger’s attempt to reclaim the dream was finally dashed for good as a large mass placed itself jarringly next to him on the bed. The force of whatever or whoever was enough to cause Ludger to bounce off of his bed for a moment. Startled, he turned his full attention to the offender.

 

Alvin met Ludger’s stunned look with a sly, shit eating grin. Elle cheered from the doorway with a mischievous looking Rowen behind her. Ludger groaned, “Alright, alright. I’m getting up…” He yawned, stretching as he dragged himself out of bed.

 

“Aww, and here I thought I was going to have to bust out some mov--” Ludger had thrown a pillow at Alvin’s face. He didn’t need Elle to ask questions…. or worse.

 

Alvin just laughed it off. “Besides, I thought you said back on the train that you didn’t need sleep.” He got up, watching Ludger trudge around his room.

 

“His mind more than likely perceives that it still requires the same amount of sleep that it had prior to all of this.” Rowen’s amused voice came from the doorway.

 

Ludger shrugged, it sounded good enough to him. Ludger rubbed his eyes as he walked out into the living room. Everyone greeted him, some with more teasing than others. He brushed it off and got himself ready to go.   

 

After a bit of talking, they all decided that there was no reason why they all had to go to Helioborg. Jude, Milla, Muzet, Rowen and Elize opted to stay in Trigleph with Elle to either attend to personal business or catch any interesting information. That left Gaius, Leia and Alvin to join Ludger on the trek to the research facility. Jude had given them some instructions as to what machines to use. He also noted that Balan would help them and had texted his coworker.

 

Goodbyes and waves were traded as the two groups parted ways to find as many answers as they could.

 

________________________________________

 

“Hello? It’s me. They just left for Helioborg.” A man shifted in the crowd, blending in as he watched Ludger and company leave.

  
“What are your orders?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A WILD PLOT APPEARS


	8. Unavoidable Battle

The journey to Helioborg was nothing out of the ordinary. Any monsters that they happened to run into met a swift end. It had become boring.

Balan met them at the entrance, giving warm greetings as he lead them up to the main lab. Balan bubbled excitedly the entire way up, postulating off the wall theories as they walked. Ludger tried to not let any of the curious or wary looks get to him as they passed by.

Ten minutes later and Balan presented them to a menacing looking machine. Alvin interrogated the all-too-happy-to-talk-about-it Balan as the researcher helped Ludger get hooked up.

Ludger didn’t recall much after Balan turned on the machine, just the pleasant buzzing of familiar voices near him. It felt like no time at all before Balan helped remove Ludger from the contraption.

The researcher started to prattle on about Ludger's state, using phrases that none of the others could comprehend. Alvin had to snap his cousin out of his jargon filled monologue so that the rest of them could understand what was going on.

“... So basically, Ludger,” Balan spoke as Leia helped him into a nearby chair, “your mana lobe’s completely gone!”

“Wait, don’t Elympions lack those?” Leia blinked, obviously confused.

Balan laughed. “That was the thought for years. It wasn’t until recently we discovered that it’s just atrophied; a vestigial organ.”

Leia formed a silent ‘o’ in understanding as Balan turned his attention back to the befuddled Ludger. “Weird, right? Because from our studies so far, it’s just not possible for a human to just… _not have_ a mana lobe.”

Ludger nodded slightly, putting the pieces together. “So… I’m not human any more? Is that what you’re saying?”

Balan made a so-so gesture with his hand. “Well, not exactly. And this is just a hypothesis so I’d have to do more research but... from what I’m seeing, you still have several organs that are necessary for humans… but…”

“But, I’m also missing some.” Ludger sighed at Balan’s sheepish smile. “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. Pluto’s a jerk but he’s not a liar.”

“Wait, you guys already knew?”

Alvin shrugged, “More or less. Call it a follow up.” He grinned at Balan.

Balan pouted a little, deflated that he wasn't the first to find out. Alvin just chuckled.

Balan ran through a few more tests before giving them the green light to go. Ludger thanked him and promised to come back should some other oddity crop up. They all exchanged goodbyes before heading back out to the Torbalan Highroad.

A soft breeze tussled Ludger’s hair, rustling the leaves in one of the scarce trees as they passed. There weren’t as many monsters as before; Ludger had chalked it up to them disposing the majority of them on their way to Helioborg. He noticed Gaius and Alvin were on edge and he supposed he couldn’t blame them.

After all, it was far too quiet.

Ludger didn’t want to say anything to cause undue panic, but he knew that even at the calmest of times one could hear gentle twitter of birds. He kept alert, wondering what could be looming around the next turn.

The further they continued on, the more it seemed like something was wrong. They were nearing Trigleph and hadn’t encountered any enemies of note; even Leia started to notice. A loud crash from behind signaled their fears had manifested. They all assumed their standard battle positions; Alvin linked with Leia while Ludger linked on and off with Gaius.

The foe before them was a massive Golem; it reminded Ludger of another pair of foes they had defeated before. The monster roared, charging at them aggressively. Its massive arms swung side to side, seeking any easy target. Leia had barely dodged, immediately falling back to focus on keeping the guys alive and attacking when she could. Ludger cast Firestorm only to have no effect. He quickly switched gears and tried to use more combo attacks with Gaius. The now apparent Elemental Golem roared to the sky again in frustration as they attacked it. Ludger could have sworn it sounded frustrated.

“This isn’t working!” Alvin dove, shooting at it in vain.

Ludger broke off his link with Gaius to join with Leia, seeing if maybe they could re-create the four elemental spells that Milla and Jude had at their disposal. Alvin and Gaius tried to keep it at bay while the other two amped their spells. The Golem charged again, targeting Alvin and beating him down as Ludger’s and Leia’s spell cast. To their dismay, it seemed to heal the beast rather than harm it.

Leia focused her next spell to revive a knocked out Alvin while Gaius tried to hold the Golem’s attention. Ludger’s eyes widened as the Golem completely disregarded Gaius in favor of charging at Leia; like it knew what she was doing. Leia had no way of dodging out of the way while she chanted her spell; she went down quick. Ludger rushed to her side with a life bottle in hand, just barely getting it to her before the Golem did a twirling tornado with it’s bone-crushing arms.

Ludger was barely conscious when Gaius, even after putting up a good fight, finally succumbed to the brute’s shear power.

_No…_

__

_It can’t… it can’t end like this._

__

_Not after…_

Ludger balled his fists, gritting his teeth as the Golem sluggishly surveyed the area for threats.

He looked at the battered and bloodied bodies of the others, gnashing his teeth.

“I won’t…”

The Golem turned to Ludger, its sensors picking up his weak voice and weaker motions.

Trying to pull himself up, Ludger looked at it defiantly.

_I won’t let you defeat us!_

Rising on shaky arms, words tumbled from his mouth, _“In this wide, endless world... we draw our own maps…”_

The Golem howled, beating its arms together as a threat. Ludger’s weakened arms moved to steady his wobbly knee as he put pressure on it.

_“Enduring our tears, we walk on,”_ his voice started to get its power back, encouraging to delve into the supreme power welling inside of him.

Another bellow erupted from the monster as it advanced on Ludger, closing the distance as he rose to his feet.

Squaring himself and summoning the loudest voice he could muster, Ludger exclaimed, **_“Come on now, stand up, no matter how many times it takes! Call upon the sleeping lion. Let's live on, towards tomorrow. INVICTUS!”_**

A bright, intricate insignia spread from Ludger’s feet in an instant, crossing the terrain as it touched his comrades. Ludger felt all of his power drain from his body; it crumpled to the ground as the others began to regain their footing. The crest still emblazoned on the ground boosted the others’ powers while hindering the Golem.

The last thing Ludger saw was Leia running towards him and the faint cry of his name in the distance.

____________________________________

**  
  
**

The Elympion skyline glistened as the sun began its descent. The soft sound of opera wafted through the air, disturbing any silence that might have lingered. Papers covered a well used desk, showcasing the owner’s dedication to whatever job they were tasked with. The phone at the corner began to ring, alerting its owner.

A crisply-dressed woman picked it up, answering brusquely, “Yes.”

A pause as a man on the other line gave a full report. She tapped her fingers on the desk. “No, keep tabs on them for now. Keep your distance and keep me posted.” She hung up the phone for the moment, grabbing a pen and some paper. In short hand, she put a reminder for some meeting on the scrap.

Picking the phone back up, she hit one of the speed-dial numbers. The other line only rung once before someone answered. A smirk crossed her face as she spoke, “It seems your pet wasn’t as invincible as you thought. We were able to retrieve the data. It should be on its way to you.”

A pause as the other end responded, “...I know you won’t disappoint me, Cathall. An opening will come soon enough.”

A friendly laugh rang out in the near empty office. More words were exchanged before she hung up. Sitting back at her desk, she turned her attention to the woman across from her.

“I trust you know the situation.”

An enthralling smile spread along her seductive face, amber eyes narrowing amusedly. “You must ask?”

A cool huff of levity was her only response.

“Ah yes, I understand.” She stood up and dusted herself off, “I will be sure to have a report on something soon. Be sure to tell precious Cathall that he still owes me for that last heist.”

Another chuckle and a nod, “Of course, Bellona.”

Bellona curtsied, turning to leave.

“Oh, and Bellona?” She stopped to turn back  to the woman at the desk, “Do be careful.”

A wicked grin split across Bellona’s face, “Oh Alphonsa, my dear, when am I not?” With that, she left the office to parts unknown.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Apparently you find out about the mana lobe in game but you have to do side quests. I found out about it here: http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/616012-tales-of-xillia/67365004
> 
> In other news: More wild plot appears ;D
> 
> (Comments help fuel us just sayin')


	9. Recuperating

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little change in POV this chapter.

 

It had been just under a day since the attack from the Golem. Ludger still hadn’t woken up yet and it was starting to cause some serious concern.

 

Gaius, along with Alvin and Leia, tried to explain what glimpses they had caught before he had collapsed on the battlefield. Milla, Muzet and Jude all listened and discussed the possibilities of what happened while Rowen and Elize kept Elle mostly distracted. Gaius caught her more than once looking in worriedly from the doorway.

 

After a while, they eventually decided to split up; a few of them would keep an eye on Ludger while the others would find out more on the Golem. Gaius offered to stay, no one contested him on it. Muzet agreed to stay as well, mentioning that she’d probably be more help there. Elle wanted to stay as well, despite the others telling her that Ludger would be fine.

 

“No! I wanna stay here!” She crossed her arms and puffed up her cheeks defiantly.

 

Gaius couldn’t help but smile a little. He patted her head gently and she seemed to calm down a little. The others left with the promise of being back soon.

 

The apartment was so quiet; even the sounds of busy Trigleph seemed to be lost in the silence. None of them spoke for a while. Gaius suspected it was because they didn’t want to accidentally wake Ludger. Not that it looked anything was going to be waking him up at this point. Gaius exhaled, something Muzet took particular interest in.

 

“Aw, what’s wrong?” She floated around him, Elle watching the two of them from her spot on the bed.

 

Gaius’s eyes followed her, frowning ever so slightly. “I thought it would be obvious.” His eyes landed on Ludger, brows knitted together in concern.

 

Muzet pursed her lips and pouted, “You’re no fun. It’s not like he’s dead.”

 

“No, however his current state is still concerning.”

 

“He’s probably just low on mana. It sounded like whatever spell he used drained him.” She hummed.

 

Elle blinked, “How d’ya fix that then?”

 

“Hmmm. Well, when I first came to Reize Maxia and met Jude, I had depleted a lot of my mana and had to tether with him.” Muzet grinned mischievously, something Gaius wasn’t sure he wanted to deal with.

 

“Tethering…? Wazzat?” Elle wrinkled her nose at the foreign word.

 

“It is when a spirit forms a bond with a human, namely a Rieze Maxian, to replenish their mana by using their host’s mana lobe.” Gaius just hoped Muzet wasn’t going to get explicit with the explanation. He felt scandalized enough when Muzet finally divulged the more suggestive details. Still, he suspected that her bringing it up wasn’t without reason.

 

Elle nodded in comprehension, “So, I couldn’t tether. But you and everyone else can.”

 

“Except for Alvin, but yes.”

 

“...Does Ludger need to tether?”

 

“Since he’s mostly spirit now, I suppose it’d probably be a good idea.” Muzet mused, looking at Gaius suggestively.

 

He knew she was doing this on purpose but she was right; Ludger needed mana and at present, he was the only one who could provide it.

 

“I am sure this was something you could have mentioned when the others were still here.”

 

She shrugged, smirking. “It slipped my mind.”

 

Elle tilted her head ot the side, looking at Muzet suspiciously, “You forget things really often…”

 

Muzet hummed, “Do I?”

Gaius just ignored her, moving closer to Ludger to better establish a tether with him. Elle watched him, transfixed at what magic would occur before her eyes.

 

It wasn’t flashy, in fact it didn’t even look like Gaius did anything. He could feel it though, the familiar synchrony. The gentle pull of mana felt different from the cacophony of reckless power when he was tethered with Muzet.

 

“...Did it work?” Elle looked to Gaius expectantly.

 

He nodded, “If you mean my establishing a tether, then yes. It will take a little bit to see if it will actually benefit him.”

 

“Oh…” She settled back on the bed, looking to Ludger before looking back at Gaius. “How long d’you think that’ll take?”

 

Gaius tenderly looked at her. It really couldn’t be blamed with how worried she was about Ludger. “I do not know. I doubt it will be an extremely long time, however.”

 

“Good. Ludger’s got a job to do! He can’t just sleep around.” She huffed, crossing her arms while looking at him.

 

"He will wake  in due time." Gaius chuckled.

 

"But she's right," Muzet pouted, "it's awfully dull with him bedridden like that."

 

"You could always assist the others if this is too tedious for you. I do believe that Elle and I could ‘hold down the fort’ as it were."

 

Muzet huffed, floating boredly around the room. “I suppose I could. But what if he wakes up?” She whined, floating back to Gaius’s ear. “I don’t want to miss it! You type too slow…”

 

Gaius knew the ‘if you even make it to your message inbox’ hung in the air.

 

“Then I’ll just tell Jude or someone!” Thankfully, Elle seemed to have his back.

 

“See? There seems to be no issue.”

 

“Fiiiiiine. I know when I’m not wanted.”

 

Gaius chuckled slightly as Muzet floated out and away to wherever the others were now.

 

"Hmph, she's so noisey."

 

"She means well, she just has... a peculiar way of showing it."

 

"I'll say.”

 

Ludger shifted ever so slightly, barely catching either of his guardians' attention at first.

 

It took Gaius a moment to notice the small shift in the tether with Ludger. He thought of it as a good sign.

 

Time passed; Elle fell asleep on the bed next to Ludger. Gaius sat back in his chair, resting his eyes but fully aware of his surroundings. The soft breathing of the two Kresniks staved off the impending silence of the apartment as the king tried to make as little noise as possible.

 

Gaius opened his eyes, watching the two of them just thinking about how much they had gone through in such a short time. Just the recountance of their journey caused his heart to ache. He reached out his hand, stroking aside some stray hairs that had fallen across Ludger’s face.

 

A light sigh escaped him, causing Gaius to continue to gently move his hair out of the way. It was cathartic; Gaius didn’t even realize this was something that he needed. Once he had moved all of Ludger’s hair to the side, he contentedly continue to just lightly stroke it.

 

Gaius had finally started to come to terms with the fact that he had developed feelings for Ludger. They had always gotten along, (Ludger always seemed to do that with people) now it just seemed like it had progressed from simple friendship. Granted, Gaius still valued Ludger as a dear and treasured friend. He had just finally come to realize that he meant more than that now. Gaius suspected Ludger felt the same, if unconsciously at least, and understood that he might eventually have to inquire that line of thought.

  
For now, Gaius just kept positive thoughts of Ludger waking soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long and it's not very long. Been busy, Asch has been too. They really didn't get t look this over but I didn't want ot bother them :'> expect long delays like this though, sorry guys. (Comments do help keep us motivated even if we're busy though)


End file.
